If I Were Just a Little Braver
by SullenFool
Summary: Fée, a timid Eevee with a deep - seated desire to explore, finds herself thrown into a world far larger than anything she could've ever imagined. In order to fulfill her dream, she must first overcome her cowardice and learn what bravery truly means. A story based partially on Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky. Reviews appreciated!
1. I want to be brave

**•   
Chapter 1**

**"I want to be brave..."**

It was a dark and stormy night. At least, it seemed a lot like it. It was actually midday, with the time barely reaching past noon. The skies, once as clear as crystal and blue as the ocean, was covered by an enormous layer of storm clouds. Following that, the usual soft, gentle breeze had intensified into a vicious squall, threatening to carry away anything that wasn't heavy enough to avoid its windy clutches. Finally, and worst of all, the bright golden sun, warm and calming, was replaced by an unceasing rainstorm. What would've been a wonderful day was transformed into an icy, windy and horrible nightmare.

I sprinted down the empty, rainy streets of Treasure Town. It's strange. Just a few hours ago, the entire town was loud and bustling. The streets were filled to the brim with lively cheer and happy activity. Now, it's just cold and lonely. Once the storm had reared its ugly head, everyone in town quickly packed and rushed for shelter.

The town was being ravaged by the storm. A lot of random objects were being picked up by the rampant winds. Stuff like wooden chairs, signs and even tables were flying around the streets, crashing into walls and knocking into other objects and flinging those off into the air too. It was a terrifying mess.

It took every single drop of willpower I had to push myself forward, step by step. Every second, with every single step I took, I felt like I was going to break down on the spot and start crying. Every nerve in my body was shouting at me, telling me to stop and hide. To give up on this foolish task and just go home.

But my gut refused. I wanted to cry, I wanted to run away and forget this entire thing. But... deep inside me, I knew I would never forgive myself if I just gave up. It was my cowardice that put myself in to this situation, it was all because of I just wasn't brave enough to defend myself..

* * *

"It's an Eevee! The footprint is a female Eevee's!"

Startled, the small fox-like creature leapt off the wooden grille she was standing on. The Eevee nervously searched for the source of the voice, looking to her left and right with a panicky look on her face. All she could see around her, however, was a pair of large, burning braziers, totem poles with the features of several different Pokémon carved into the wood, and a couple of dry-looking bushes. Everything else around her was the edge of a cliff and a breathtaking panoramic view of the early morning horizon.

However, most striking of all, was the massive tent that stood imposingly in front of her. The Eevee timidly looked up at the entrance of the tent. The top of the canvassed building was painted pink, and had two holes placed next to each other in such a way that it resembled a pair of eyes. Furthermore, several large strips of pink canvas were attached to the sides of the tent in such a fashion that it looked like arms and ears. Underneath the garishly pink top however, was an unfriendly-looking gate that was made out of thick dark wood.

The Eevee quivered as she stared at the tent. She slowly took a few steps back from the large gate and collapsed onto the dirt road.

"I...I guess I really couldn't do it..." She whimpered sadly, "Today...I thought today was my day..."

She removed the tiny bag that was slung around her body with her mouth and despondently pulled the flap open and took out what was inside.

"I even brought my precious treasure with me this time..."

In her hands was a small, odd-looking rock. From underneath, it looked like any other old mundane rock. However, the top of the rock was almost completely flat and smooth. The surface was extremely well-polished, almost glass-like in texture. What made the stone odd though was a series of strange, ornate patterns that adorned the smooth side of the rock.

The patterns were made up of a series of white colored swirls that coalesced into a tiny perfect circle in the center. Furthermore, a couple of large, block-like designs protruded out of the circle and stretched towards the edge of the rock, where they stopped just short of where the surface ends. It was a beautiful, yet mysterious work of art.

The Eevee sighed and gently laid her paw on top of her precious treasure. A small tear fell from her face and landed on the surface of the rock.

"I h-had hoped that..." She said, choking a little as she softly cried, "I was just a little braver..."

"Just a l-little bit of c-courage was all I wanted..." The Eevee said softly as she wiped the tear off the rock, "But...I'm just too much of a coward."

The Eevee scooped her little rock back into her bag and replaced it around her body. She took one more look at the tent's imposing entrance. She gulped and slowly got back onto her feet.

"I guess I'll come back tomorrow..." She mumbled despondently, "I don't want to give up..."

She wiped her face and silently walked away with her head hanging down.

"...meh, heh, heh..."

"...whoa, hoh, hoh..."

Two creepy laughs floated through the air as the Eevee exited the area. From behind one of the large braziers, two Pokémon came out from hiding. One was a small, blue bat-like creature. It perched itself on its partner, which looked somewhat like a very lumpy ball with had a skull tattooed on it.

"Meh, heh. Did'ja hear that Koffing?" Said the bat, "That little crybaby said that she had a precious treasure, didn't she? Meh, heh."

"Whoa, hoh, she did, Zubat." Koffing replied, smiling widely, "Whadd'ya say we go and find out what this treasure is? Hoh, hoh."

"You read my mind, meh, heh, heh..."

"Whoa, hoh, hoh..."

The two Pokémon grinned mischievously and silently floated off toward the crying Eevee.

* * *

I quickly skidded to a stop when I saw them. I recognized the two immediately, the one that looked like a tiny, flapping bat and his partner that resembled a beach ball that was left outside for far too long. The two of them looked like they were arguing with each other on the beach. The beach ball had my bag slung around his...head and was trying to float toward the town while the bat had grabbed onto the strap with his mouth and was trying to flap towards the other direction.

"Meh, heh, heh! I'm telling you! We should go this way and hide in the Beach Cave until it all blows over!" The bat shouted at his partner. An amazing feat, considering that he was also pulling the bag with his mouth.

"And I'm telling you," The beach ball shouted in response, "that we should go back to the boss! The boss'll be annoyed if we're gone for too long, hoh, hoh!"

"I don't wanna get blasted away by the wind while trying to go back!"

"And I don't wanna get yelled at by the boss!"

They kept tugging at my bag even though the storm was raging around them. I flinched as a large wave crashed against the beach, spraying me with sea foam and water. When I reopened my eyes, the two of them were still there and still arguing over the bag. They didn't even realize I was standing right here, watching them struggle.

I wanted to just run up and snatch my bag back. My precious treasure was inside it, after all. But as I imagined myself moving forward, my body hesitated. I felt my insides turn ice cold as fear overtook my senses. I tried to move, but it felt like my legs had become as heavy as concrete pillars.

I cursed my cowardice. Right in front of me were the two baddies that stole my precious treasure, and I couldn't even muster the courage to confront them. I grit my teeth and tried to dredge up as much bravery as I could, but it was as if my entire reservoir of courage had run dry. I wanted to move, I wanted to retrieve my treasure, but...

"I'm just too much of a coward... If I were just a little braver..."

Suddenly, everything vanished. A spontaneous white flash of light wiped everything away from my vision. I quickly closed my eyes, but the searing brightness still shone through my eyelids.

"Whoa, ho, hooooooo?!"

"Meeeeh?!"

"Eeek!"

We all screamed at the same time as the unexpected flash hit. Then, right as I was recovering from the light, an earsplitting sound exploded around us. It was as if hundreds of Voltorb and Electrode exploded at the same time! The sound was so deafening, I nearly fainted on the spot.

When I recovered from the shock, the first thing I saw was the thieving pair lying on the ground, groaning in pain. Between the two of them was my bag, the strap was torn into two pieces. They must have ended up tearing it apart during the chaos.

I gasped when I saw that the flap on my bag had fluttered open. My precious treasure had flown out and was half buried in the wet sand.

'Now's my chance', I thought, 'The two of them were still dazed from the explosion and unable to move. If I can run over there and snag my items now, I can get away without any trouble!'

I shakily stood up on my legs, pulling myself out of the beach. Shakily, I psyched myself up to make a dash over to the fallen items. I ducked my head down and kicked off the sand.

"Yeee-aaaah!"

I tripped. I yelped as my entire body flipped forwards into the air. I spun forward, screaming incoherently, and crashed back down onto the sand, face first.

"Ouch!"

I tried to pull myself out of the wet sand, but it was futile. My aching and freezing body immediately collapsed back onto the sand, and would move no more. All my fear, combined with all the running I did earlier must've finally caught up with me. My heart began to beat rapidly as I glanced up ahead. My bag and my treasure were right there, almost within reach!

'Just a little more,' I prayed, 'just a little more and I can do this!'

"Uuuurgh..."

My heart froze for a second when I heard a moaning noise from beside me. My eyes darted to my right. The gassy beach ball had begun to stir! I desperately tried to move, but my body was still as stiff as a board.

"Whoa...ho...ho..." He had a dazed, confused look on his face as he began to slowly levitate back up into the air. He turned around a few times, trying to get his bearings straight before his eyes locked directly on my prone body. A sickening smirk appeared on his face when he finally managed to refocus his thoughts.

"Well if it isn't the crybaby from town! I didn't think you had the guts to come chasing after us in this storm, whoa, ho, ho!"

I gave him the angriest glare I could muster, but he simply chortled and ignored me. He floated over to his still-unconscious partner and nudged him awake.

"Hey Zubat! Wake up and take a look at who decided to show up!" The gas ball said in a jovial tone.

"Meeeeh...heh?"

Zubat, finally roused and awake, awkwardly flapped his wings to fly back up into the air. He looked around to find out what his partner was talking about, before his gaze finally settled on my limp body.

"Meh, heh, heh! You're right, Koffing!" He said after making a shrill, annoying - sounding laugh, "It's the little wimp! What's the matter little Eevee? Too scared to move?"

"Aaa..ghh.." I tried to respond, but my mouth only made weird, gurgling noises at them. The two of them began to laugh nastily at my helplessness.

"Looks like you're still just a big coward, meh, heh, heh." Zubat said, mockingly, "Don't worry though, we'll take good care of your treasure for you! Meh, heh, heh!"

He swooped down and snagged my treasure with his teeth. With a swift flick of his mouth, he flung it into the air and it landed on Koffing, where it balanced precariously on the top of his head. Zubat then began to move away, towards the other side of the beach.

"We're going to hide in the cave, Koffing." Zubat shouted bluntly, "I don't care if the boss gets mad at us, I don't wanna get fried by that lightning!"

"Whoa, hoh, hoh!" Koffing chortled, "But what do we do with wimpy limpy here?"

Zubat turned and glanced at me. He sneered.

"Just leave her there, I'm sure someone will find her eventually."

"Cruel to the bone, Zubat. Whoa, hoh, hoh!"

"W-wait...!" I cried out, but my words fell on deaf ears. The two of them had already turned their backs and left for the other side of the beach. I desperately tried to move, but my body refused to budge even an inch.

To add insult to injury, another large wave came crashing down on the beach right then, spraying me with freezing seawater. I shivered as I felt a long, slimy strand of seaweed slip over my body as the wave receded.

Thankfully, I was just high enough on the beach to avoid being dragged away into the ocean by the waves. But that thought gave me little consolation as I laid on the wet beach, moaning and trembling from the cold.

With nothing I could do, and no one around to help me, I could feel nothing but despair. I closed my eyes and began to cry.

Eventually, I cried myself to unconsciousness...

* * *

I do not know how many hours had passed before I finally woke up. My body was aching, freezing, and above all else, tired. I shivered as I shakily got back on my feet and shook the seawater off my fur. I looked around to see if anything had happened since I fell asleep.

The storm had passed. The dark, thunderous clouds had finally parted, revealing the long-awaited sun. The entire beach was enveloped in a beautiful shade of orange as the sun slowly moved below the ocean. The rough sea was now calm and serene, a picturesque carpet of blue that stretched out into the horizon.

Everything around me was covered in debris and other refuse from the ocean. Piles of seaweed, chunks of driftwood and the occasional glass bottle littered the sand, making the once pristine beach look like a soggy garbage dump.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a few red creatures scuttling out of their hidey-holes and cautiously peeking around the rocky outcroppings that surrounded the beach. The Krabby, once they were sure that the danger had passed, began to fill up the cliffside in droves. Then, once they were all in place, every single Krabby turned to face the ocean.

One by one, the Krabby began to blow small, glistering bubbles out of their mouths. The bubbles floated towards the sun, reflecting the orange rays off their glistening forms onto the ocean and the beach. Soon, the entire beach was filled with hundreds of beautiful, marble-like bubbles floating in the air, shining rainbow colored lights all over the ocean.

"Wow..." It was a breathtaking sight. I watched as the flickering lights dance all over the ocean, making the water sparkle like a field of jewels. All the little nooks and crannies around the rocky beach was now brightly lit by the reflecting lights. Even the beach, with all it's junk and garbage lying around, looked absolutely magnificent during this spectacle.

I walked over to the edge of the ocean. The water gently splashed against my feet as I looked down into the sea at my reflection. I looked like a mess. My eyes were puffy and red from crying all day, my fur was matted and wet and a few strands of seaweed was draped around my neck like a bad scarf. I shook off the seaweed and tried to clean up my fur as much as I could, but the saltiness of the seawater prevented me from using my tongue.

I watched the bubbles float lazily towards the sun as I sat on the sand. I let the sun's warmth slowly melt the icy feeling inside me while the rolling waves caressed my sore legs. I could feel my prior sadness slowly fading away as I watched this relaxing scene. For the first time in hours, I felt my face curl up into a smile.

"It's so beautiful," I mumbled contentedly to myself. I moved my head slightly to try and make it more comfortable, I saw my bag lying in the distance. It was half submerged in the seawater, desperately hanging on to an upright piece of driftwood that was stuck in the sand. Its now useless straps were flapping in the wind like a pair of tiny wings.

I got up from my comfortable spot and walked over to my bag. The flap was open and all that was left inside was a few berries. Of course, my precious treasure was still missing. A pang of regret struck me as I stared sadly at the empty bag. Sadness and frustration washed over me as I pulled the bag off the piece of wood.

"If there's one thing I wish," I said to nobody as I stared out into the ocean, "I wish I could become...just a little braver."

"I'm tired of being a coward. I'm tired of crying and feeling bad for myself whenever I get scared. I want to...I want to be stronger, I want to be brave."

"Maybe it's impossible for me." I chuckled mirthlessly at my words.

"But...I don't want to give up."

I looked inside my bag and pulled out a small, white object. It was an old, broken badge. One side of the badge was completely shattered into pieces, and the jewel that was set in the center was missing. I held it up into sky, letting it reflect the sunlight off it's shiny surface.

"One day, I want to become an Explorer." I felt tears escaping my eyes again as I gazed longingly at the old badge, "I want to wear a badge like this, and call myself a real Explorer..."

I laughed humorlessly and let the badge slip from my paws. It landed in the sand, where it glowed dully in the sunset. I hung my head down and sobbed silently to myself. I knew, in my heart, that no matter how much I try to cheer myself up, I would always be too afraid, too scared to follow my dreams. What happened today was proof of that.

Angry at myself, I picked up the badge again and threw it as hard as I could towards the ocean. It sparkled in the sunlight as it traveled through the air before eventually disappearing into the sea with a tiny splash. I panted as I stared at where the badge had vanished. I reached into my bag again and pulled out an Oran Berry and prepared to toss it as well.

But then, something caught my attention. A small blue Pokémon was floating out in the ocean, near where my badge landed. It looked unconscious and was clinging desperately on a piece of driftwood. From where I was standing, I couldn't quite make out what kind of Pokémon it was.

Maybe it was because sense of worry overwrote my fear, because I suddenly found myself halfway in the middle of the ocean, paddling as hard as I could to reach the unconscious Pokémon. After a few seconds of frantic splashing, I reached the piece of driftwood that it was hanging on to. I took a quick cursory look at the Pokémon. It wasn't anyone I recognized from Treasure Town.

I couldn't quite tell if it was a boy or a girl. It was blue, and had a black mask-like marking that covered its face. It had a long snout and a pair of pointy ears. It was clutching onto the driftwood with two long arms, which had strange white bumps on the backs of them. The rest of its body was underwater, so I couldn't tell quite well what it looked like.

I shook my head. This isn't the time to be ogling. I wedged myself between the piece of driftwood and the Pokémon and transferred its grip onto my body. It was surprisingly light. As a result, I managed to paddle the both of us back to shore safely with little difficulty.

When I reached solid land, I quickly laid the Pokémon down in a dry part of the beach. I placed my head against its chest, trying to hear its heartbeat. To my great relief, it was still beating. It sounded slow and weak, but it was there. I quickly ran over to my bag and dragged it over with my mouth. I really wish those two didn't tear the strap, it was a little frustrating to have to pull it everywhere like this. I reached inside and withdrew the Oran Berry from earlier and held it in my mouth.

I glanced around the unconscious Pokémon's body, trying to figure out where its mouth was. With my paw, I pushed up its nose.

"Aha!" Finding its mouth, I opened it and shoved the berry inside. All it did, however, was give the Pokémon a chubby-looking face. Feeling foolish, I realized there was no way it would be able to chew while asleep. I opened its mouth again and retrieved the berry.

"Um..." I racked my brain as to how to do this correctly. Suddenly, I had a bright idea!

"Hold on, okay? I'll be right back." I assured the unconscious Pokémon and ran off.

I looked around the beach, searching for anything I could use. I pulled apart piles of debris and seaweed all over the beach. Then, lying there sparkling in the sand, I found one.

"Yes!" I pulled the small glass bottle out of the sand. Luckily, it was still in one piece. I peered into the mouth and found that it was nice and empty. Taking the Oran Berry, I placed it on top of the bottle's tiny mouth and squeezed as hard hard as I can. My efforts were rewarded when the purple juice from the berry began to flow into the glass bottle.

When the berry was completely squeezed dry, I carefully picked up the bottle with my teeth and brought it back to the unconscious Pokémon.

"Okay, here goes nothing..." I cradled the Pokémon's head carefully and placed the bottle against its mouth. I tilted the bottle so the juice would flow out of the bottle. I could see the juice slowly draining from the bottle.

Once the entire bottle was empty, I placed it into my bag and worriedly watched for any movement from the Pokémon.

After a few heart pounding minutes, the Pokémon began to cough. Seawater and Oran Berry juice flew out of its mouth as it gasped for air.

"Urrgh..."

I felt a wave of relief wash over me as the Pokémon slowly sat up. It opened its eyes, revealing a pair of bright red pupils. It looked around with a dazed expression on its face.

"W...where...?" It said. Its voice sounded shaky, but it was undoubtedly the voice of a male, "Where am I...?"

"H-hello! Are you feeling okay?" I quickly replied, feeling a little shy and foolish. He turned around and faced me, staring at me with his crimson red eyes.

"I'm okay...I think." He said, shaking his head a little, "Who are you?"

"I'm..." I replied. I paused for a second. Should I give him my name? I don't even know who he is. But, as I looked at him, I felt a strange emotion inside of me. Maybe, I thought, maybe I could trust him with something important like my name.

I raised up a paw to my chest and sincerely stated, "I'm.. Fée."

"Fée... Fée..." He repeated my name a few times, as if he was trying to memorize it.

"Um... if you don't mind me asking..." I said, snapping him out of his trance, "who are you?"

He deliberated for a moment, closing his eyes and turning away from me as if he was deep in thought. After a few seconds of silence, he shook his head and faced me again.

"I don't know... do you know who I am?"


	2. How about, Blue?

**•   
Chapter 2**

**"How about... Blue?"**

I stared blankly at my new companion. The first thought that went through my head was that he was making a joke, albeit a strange one. But one look at the expression on his face brushed that thought away under the rug. He was staring at me with a serious, almost expectant look. Feeling put on the spot, I shuffled my feet nervously and replied.

"What do you mean by that?"

His serious expression was replaced by a look of disappointment. A sudden sense of guilt washed over me as I saw that look.

"I-I'm sorry, I wish I could give you a better answer..." I hung my head down sadly, a little ashamed at my uselessness.

"No...it's alright. It's not your fault." He said. I pulled my head up and saw that the disappointed look on his black-striped face was replaced by a small smile. He thumped his chest with his paw and laughed.

"In fact, I should be the one apologizing," He said, jokingly, "We've just met, and I'm already demanding answers from you."

"Ehh...?" I was taken aback by how forthcoming he was. It was a little surprising, considering that he was just unconscious a few minutes ago.

"It's strange." I heard him mumble to himself, "I can't seem to remember anything from before you woke me up."

He made a grumbling noise and cocked his head to the side, looking like he was confused and annoyed at the same time. It was such a strange looking sight that I couldn't help but giggle a bit.

"Oh, sorry." He quickly raised up his paws apologetically, "Did I offend you?"

"N-no that's not it!" Unintentionally, I found myself mimicking his action. The two of us ended up with our paws up in the air and facing each other.

"Hehehe..."

"Hahaha..."

Suddenly, the two of us began to laugh. Maybe it was because of how just how awkward we were being or how ridiculous we looked, but the two of us just started laughing and laughing. The two of us flopped onto the sand, big smiles plastered on our faces like clowns.

We kept laughing for a few minutes. I was a feeling happier, much happier than before. Despite how strange he was, or how weird the atmosphere became, I felt like I've made a new friend. I rolled over onto my belly and tried to pull myself back up, but a sudden wave of giggles prevented that.

"Oof!" I tripped over my own feet and flopped back on the soft sand, still giggling uncontrollably. Embarrassed, I blushed bright red. I tried to get back up again, only to fall down onto the sand again.

"Here, let me help." My new friend reached out and grasped my paws. His grip was firm, but gentle. He helped me back onto my feet and then let go. Feeling self-conscious, I drew back and pretended to dust the sand off my fur when I was actually trying to hide the luminescent blush that was slowly creeping onto my face. After getting all the stray grains of sand off my ruff, I shyly looked up at his face.

I expected him to be smiling at me, maybe even laughing a little, but what I saw was nothing like that. Instead of a smile, he was grimacing. He was gritting his teeth tightly, and his eyes were tightly shut. He looked like he was in severe pain, his entire body was doubled over and twitching uneasily.

"Guu..aaaghh!" Suddenly, he let loose an unearthly roar and fell onto his knees. I watched in horror as his hands shot up and clutched the sides of his head, grabbing his fur violently as if he was going to tear it out.

"H-hey...-are you alright?" I was terrified, and I wanted to run away. But the sight of him suffering like that, to be in such pain prevented me from running away. I wanted help, but my panicking mind couldn't come up with any ideas. I anxiously swung my head around, desperately trying to find something – anything that could be of any use.

But then, he suddenly stopped moving. I watched as his arms suddenly dropped to his sides, loosing his grip on his head. Then, his body began to collapse and fall forward like a puppet with its strings cut.

"Watch out!" I shouted as I rushed towards him, placing myself underneath his falling body before he hit the ground. However, his body was heavier than I expected and the both of us ended up face down in the shore anyway.

"Geh!" I spat sand out of my mouth and shook my head. I craned my head around to see if my friend was okay. I sighed in relief as I saw that he was uninjured from the fall. Unfortunately, his body was still draped over mine like a heavy blanket, making it difficult for me to move. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't muster the strength required to untangle myself from underneath him.

"Ooogh..." I heard a mumbling noise from somewhere above me, "What...-what happened?"

"Are you okay now?" I asked, craning my head back again to look at him in the eye, "You kinda went...weird earlier."

"I...what?" He sounded dazed, as if he had just woken up. He shook his head and looked around him confusingly. He looked down at me, who was still pinned underneath him in a fairly awkward position.

It took an uncomfortable few seconds before he suddenly realized what he was lying on. He gave a short yelp and pulled himself off as fast as he could.

"I'm sorry," He said, shaking his head so fast that it looked like a blur, "I didn't mean to lay on you like that – wait no, I mean, I didn't – uh – gah!"

"Um, you don't have worry about me right now." I replied, a little amused by how frantic he was being. I got up and dusted the sand off my body and smiled at him, "Are you fine now? That's what I'm worried about."

He stumbled back a few paces before stopping to compose himself. He placed a paw on his chest and breathed deeply, trying to catch his breath. After a moment, he sighed and replied.

"Yeah, I think I'm fine now." He said to my relief, "Sorry for making you worry like that.

"It's alright if you're fine now." Truth be told, I was still a little surprised at his sudden change in attitude earlier, but he looked like he was back to normal now. I decided to quietly hide my discomfort and smile back at him.

"Do you – um, do you know what happened?" I said hesitatingly. Despite that even being, well, terrifying, I was still fairly curious about the reason behind that. He frowned and crossed his arms, his eyes closed as he tried to recall the events.

"I don't actually know. Everything happened so fast," He said, "when I touched you earlier, my vision suddenly blacked out."

"Blacked out?"

"Yeah. Everything just... vanished all of a sudden."

I didn't fully understand what he meant by that, but I nodded anyway so he'd continue.

"A few seconds afterward, a bright flash of light suddenly exploded from within the blackness," He illustrated the event by swinging his arms out widely, trying to show an explosion, "and it came with it a painful headache." He added on as he tapped his head.

"When the light and pain went away, I found myself on the shore again." He gestured towards the beach, "But...it was different."

"Different? How?"

"The sun." He glanced over at the setting sun in the distance, "It wasn't there. Instead, there were storm clouds covering up the entire sky. And there was a lot of rain too, just torrents and torrents of rain crashing down."

I shuddered involuntarily. His description was eerily similar to the weather earlier today. Curious, I kept my mouth shut and patiently waited for him to continue his story.

"And on the beach I saw..." He suddenly trailed off and stared directly at me. I tilted my head questioningly.

"And? What did you see next?"

He didn't respond. Instead, he suddenly turned around and glanced at the other end of the beach. I craned my neck around him and tried to see what he was looking at.

The beach itself was pretty small, with only one way down from the town and was surrounded by a series of tall, craggy cliffs. The other side of the beach held a dead end, but it held an interesting feature. At the end of the beach lied a large crack that stretched down the center of the cliff wall.

I've heard from the townspeople that beyond the crack was a massive cavern, and that the cavern was inhabited by many dangerous Pokémon, as well as having a ton of unsafe passages that lead to dead ends and even traps.

Naturally, being a coward, I've never even dared to get anywhere close to that cave.

"Who's in that cave?" I was jolted out of my thoughts by his sudden question.

"I've heard that there's nothing really interesting in there." I lied. The coward within me wanted him to drop the subject of the cave as fast as possible. I don't even know why he brought it up anyway, "Un-unless you like seeing rocks and sand, I guess."

He turned around and stared at me. I felt the temperature rise on my face again as his eyes bored into me. I quickly looked away, trying to appear as nonchalant as possible, which was proving difficult considering that my face was becoming redder by the second.

"No. That wasn't what I was asking." The seriousness of his voice pierced me. I felt my heart beat faster and faster as he continued, "Is there anyone inside there right now?"

Instantly, images of those two bullies filled my mind. Koffing and Zubat, the two mean Pokémon who stole my precious treasure. I remembered that the two of them were probably still hiding in the cave, since I've never actually seen them come outside.

Did he know about them? If so, then how? There was no way he could've been able to see us in the storm, much less mile away from shore and unconscious at that. Did this have something to do with his headache earlier? Was he planning on entering the cave if I answered his question?!

"Well?" I was suddenly snapped out of my wild thoughts by the sound of his voice, "Is there anyone in there right now?"

"Mmh..." It's not like I didn't want to answer his question, but the thought of entering the cave...and meeting the bullies again prevented me from saying anything. Inwardly, I was still pretty afraid of those two bullies. I didn't want to meet the pair of them again, and the thought of seeing them again made cold fear surge through my body.

My friend sighed at my silence. I felt my ears droop down when I heard the disappointment in his voice.

"Is..." My voice was tiny, almost inaudible as I started to speak, "Is there any reason why you ask?

I didn't receive a response. Instead, he just turned away and faced the cave entrance. Then, he took a step forwards. Then another, and another, and another.

What was he thinking?

Was he going to enter the cave?!

Why!?

Panicked thoughts raced through my head as I watched his back slowly shrink farther and farther into the distance. After a moment, he stopped in his tracks. He paused for a moment, then he turned around. Even in the far distance, I could still see his two bright red eyes. He extended his right arm towards me and made a beckoning motion.

He wanted me to follow him.

"W-what?!" I heard myself shout out of the blue, "Why?"

Of course, he was already quite a distance away and couldn't actually hear my incredulous outburst.

I didn't know what to do. The coward inside of me wanted to stay rooted where I was. The prospect of entering such a dark and scary cave was making my insides turn ice cold. My imagination started to run wild, conjuring up all sorts of terrifying thoughts of what could be inside the cave. Dangerous traps, bottomless pits, scary Pokémon...

However, as I sat there, embroiled in fear and self-loathing, I saw my friend stand in front of the cave, still watching me intently with his arm outstretched. As I looked into his eyes, I felt a slight tinge of envy. I wanted to be brave like him. But, here I was, sitting on the sand with my body paralyzed with fear at just the thought of what could be inside the cave.

"Come on Fée! Let's go get your precious treasure back!"

The sound of crashing waves, swaying trees and the cries of distant birds suddenly vanished. The only sound I heard was his shout. I gaped at him, desperately trying to process what he said as fast as I could. He had no fear on his face at all, instead, he wore an expression of determination and confidence.

"Don't be afraid!"

I barely knew this Pokémon for more than an hour, and yet, his voice was slowly melting away the fear that surrounded my heart. A small spark of warmth flared up within my chest, filling my body with an emotion I couldn't quite recognize.

"Fée!"

Then, it clicked. The warmth I felt, the emotion that is filling my body now...

...It was courage.

I closed my eyes and saw inside me, a glowing flame that resided within my heart. It wasn't much, but it felt incredible. The cowardly side of me still screamed, desperately begging me to stay away from the cave, but my new growing strength slowly drowned it out.

"So, are you coming or not?"

I put on the bravest face I could muster, and stepped forward.

* * *

The Beach Cave wasn't originally a cave in the past. In fact, the reason it even became a cave in the first place was by a complete accident that involved a particularly energetic Dugtrio and an earthquake. Originally, the cave was but a small, underwater grotto that existed underneath the cliffs that surrounded the beach. Worn away by time, sand, and the ocean waves, the grotto eventually grew larger and larger until it became a veritable maze of rock, sand, and seawater.

Once the grotto was revealed to the world, Pokémon of all kinds began to inhabit it. Water types, grass types, and even the odd rock type moved into the new cave, calling it their home. Furthermore, the vast network of mysterious tunnels and passages that made up the cave brought curious explorers to plumb its depths for adventure and the possibility of treasure.

Fée and her friend had entered the Beach Cave through the entrance, and were now slowly making their way into the labyrinthine depths. Visibility was limited, as their only sources of light they had were from the occasional beam of sunlight that entered through holes in the rocky ceiling. Long, sand-colored stalactites hung menacingly from the ceiling, hovering over similarly shaped stalagmites protruding from the ground. Seawater dripped from the ceiling at regular intervals, creating an unsettling ambiance around the pair.

The two of them huddled close together as they moved through the dim cave. Fée in particular stuck closely to her friend out of fear of being left alone in the darkness.

Fée shuddered as she walked through the trudged through the dim tunnels, quietly trying to keep her wits about her as she ventured deeper and deeper. In comparison, her partner showed absolutely no signs of fear at all. He walked straight ahead at a steady pace, only stopping every once in a while to scout out the route ahead or to avoid tripping over a stray stalagmite.

"S-so what should I call you?" Fée suddenly asked out of the blue, "I don't actually...know what your name is yet."

"My...name?" Her partner stopped and turned around. A brooding look appeared on his face as he thought about the question, "I actually don't remember what my name is, to be honest with you."

"Oh... right." Fée replied sheepishly, "You said something like that earlier, didn't you?"

"Yeah. Even now, I still can't recall anything." He shrugged, "It's getting a little annoying actually."

"Hm, how about I give you a name?" Fée said, an idea suddenly sparking in her head, "At least until you remember your real name."

"I don't mind." Fée saw him nod in the dim light, "Don't give me something embarrassing though."

"Hehe, I'll try." The Eevee pondered for a second to think of a good name for her friend. She stared at him, trying to glean some sort of inspiration off of him. After a moment of deliberation, Fée revealed her idea.

"How about...'Blue?'"

"'Blue?'" Her partner replied questioningly, "Why Blue?"

"Well, your body is mainly blue colored, and it's a pretty easy name to remember." Fée reasoned, "It sounds better than Black, I think."

"I suppose..." He said, sounding a little disappointed, "As long as you don't call me Black n' Blue, I guess I don't mind."

Fée giggled happily as her partner gave a little shrug. The mood now lightened, the newly-named Blue and Fée resumed their sojourn in the damp cave.

After a few minutes of wandering around in the darkness, they found the walls around them widening slightly, giving the two of them more room to walk through. The ground, however, became progressively damper as they continued deeper into the cave. Eventually, the floor was completely covered by a thin layer of water. Now, every footstep the pair took was now accompanied by loud splashing noises as they stepped through the wet floor.

Anxiously, Fée glanced around them as they walked. Their trip through the Beach Cave had been uneventful thus far (of which she was quite thankful for), but with every step they took, Fée felt more and more uncomfortable with her surroundings. Out of the corner her eye, she thought she spotted something move in the darkness. Gulping nervously, she tugged on her partner's hooked tail to make him stop.

"Hey, Blue?" Fée whispered, her eyes darting around them, "Do – do you see anything around us?"

"Yeah." Blue said bluntly as he stopped in his tracks. He pointed up, towards the dark ceiling above them. "They've been following us for a while."

Fée looked at where he was pointing, and immediately regretted it. Numerous pairs of glowing eyes were staring down on them, watching every move they took.

"Eeeek!" She let loose a loud shriek that echoed around the cave. Upon doing so, the ceiling began to be filled with movement. Clattering and skittering noises filled their tunnel as the darkness on the ceiling began to shift. Blue, sensing danger, immediately grabbed Fée by the waist and picked her up.

"Hang on!" He shouted as he began to sprint forwards as fast as he could. From behind them, Fée saw the glowing eyes drop from the ceiling, hitting the floor with wet splashing noises. Soon afterward, the creatures began to scuttle towards them, filling the air with a multitude of creepy skittering noises as they ran through the tunnel with alacrity.

The scuttling sounds grew louder and louder as the creatures drew closer to them. Blue, despite running as fast as he could, found traversing the increasingly deepening water was becoming more and more difficult. Not to mention the added weight of carrying Fée under his arm. Gritting his teeth, refused to give up and strained his muscles to run faster.

"T-they're getting closer!" Fée screamed in a panicked voice. Hundreds of those creatures were chasing down the dark tunnel, their scuttling noises combined to make a sound frighteningly similar to that of an ocean wave.

Eventually, the cave walls gave away to a large, atrium-like chamber. The rocky ceiling had collapsed in the center, allowing a bright beam of sunlight to shine straight down into the atrium, brightening up the surroundings considerably.

Blue, seeing the light, put on another burst of speed and charged into the bright chamber. In doing so, however, he tripped on a small stalagmite hidden beneath the knee-deep water and accidentally let go of Fée.

"Whoa!" Blue shouted in surprise as he suddenly found himself facing the water. Fée was sent flying into the air before also hitting the floor in a wet splash.

Gasping, Blue quickly pulled his head out of the water. He quickly glanced around the wide chamber, panicking and searching for his missing companion. To his relief, he found Fée lying in the water beside him, looking a little dazed and scared.

"Fée, are you alright?" Blue quickly waded over to where she lied. Fée shakily stood back up and shook off the water that coated her fur before turning to face him.

"I-I'm fine, I'm just a little shaken up."

Blue nodded at her, relieved that she was unscathed. However, his relief was short lived as the tunnel behind them began to rumble dangerously. The scuttling noises began to quickly fill the chamber as the creatures closed in on the pair.

"Shoot!" Blue, realizing that there was no way for them get away in this situation, quickly put himself between Fée and the rapidly approaching creatures.

In less than a second, the tunnel exploded with a veritable flood of activity. Hundreds of small, brown-shelled creatures burst from the tunnel and began to surround the pair with incredible speed. Their small black bodies were covered by a large, rock-like brown shell. A pair of eerie, glowing eyes protruded from the front of their bodies. Finally, four golden claw-like legs extended from underneath them, making noisy clacking sounds as they moved around the rocky walls and floor.

"It's a horde of Kabuto!" Blue heard Fée shout from behind him. He didn't know what a Kabuto was, nor did he really care. He watched the creatures scurry around them intensely, not loosening his guard for a second.

Suddenly, all motion stopped as the last Kabuto skittered into the room. Now, the atrium was filled to the brim with the brown-shelled Pokémon. Creepily, the Kabuto all moved at the same time, rotating their circular-shaped bodies to face the center of the chamber, where Fée and Blue stood. Their eyes, red and unblinking, were fixated on the pair.

"W-what do they want?" Fée whispered in a timid voice. Blue, still in a fighting stance, shook his head and glared angrily at the horde of Kabuto.

"Whatever it is they want, it's not friendly."

As if they were agreeing with Blue's words, the horde suddenly began to rapidly clack their tiny claws together, creating an incredibly noisy din that echoed around the chamber. Blue and Fée quickly covered their ears with their paws, trying to drown out the maddeningly loud sound.

Upon seeing that, the horde struck. Waves upon waves of Kabuto rushed forward, encircling themselves around the pair.

"Fée!"

"Blue!"

Blue quickly grabbed onto Fée's paw and leapt upwards. He quickly glanced down at the chaos underneath them. Kabuto crashed against Kabuto, creating a mess of claws and shells. Quashing the idea of how devastating it would've been if he was just one second slower, Blue quickly adjusted himself in midair and landed on one of the Kabuto's shells.

"Fée!" Blue shouted as the Kabuto began to angrily thrash about, trying to throw him off its back, "Whatever you do, don't let go!"

"Eek!" Fée grabbed tightly onto Blue's torso, clinging onto him for dear life. Blue slung one arm around her in order to keep her steady and began to hop across the horde of Kabuto shells, one by one.

The Kabuto horde, suddenly realizing that their prey was somehow above them now, attempted to crawl over each other to try and reach the pair. Unfortunately, for the Kabuto, every attempt they tried to strike at Blue only resulted in them receiving a sharp kick in the face.

Blue quickly looked around them for any stable footing that wasn't made out of a shell. He noticed a large ledge hanging over the atrium, directly ahead and above them. After punting away another frisky Kabuto, he began to slowly make his way over to the ledge.

Fortunately for the two, the Kabuto lacked the means to coordinate together long enough to shake them off. Furthermore, the sheer amount of Kabuto that currently resided in the chamber actually prevented them from being able to move, as their shells took up too much space in the atrium, preventing many a Kabuto from being able to even move. In their frustration, the Kabuto began to clack their little claws angrily at Blue as he used their shells as footholds.

Eventually, Blue managed to navigate their way over to the ledge. Blue detached himself from Fée's grasp and reached up, transferring her onto the ledge, wherein she quickly backed into the tunnel and hid behind the nearest stalagmite, quivering in fear. Blue quickly clambered up the outcropping to follow her.

"Agh!" Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his left leg. Blue looked down from his current position and saw that one of the Kabuto had somehow managed to break out from the stuck crowd and rigidly attached itself to his leg by means of its golden claws. Wncing in pain, Blue quickly pulled himself up the ledge, bringing the little rocky Pokémon in tow.

Once he was on solid footing, he swung his leg into the air, trying to dislodge the little shellfish Pokémon, but it obstinately stayed on. Blue reached down and gasped the Kabuto by the sides of its brown shell.

"Ghh!" Blue grunted painfully as he tried to pull the Kabuto off his leg. The creature clamped down even tighter in response.

"Blue!" Fée shouted, running out from behind the stalagmite and towards him.

"No! Stay back!"

The Kabuto's red eyes glowed sinisterly as Fée neared them. When the Eevee was close enough, it detached itself from Blue's leg and skittered towards her. Fée screamed as the Kabuto leapt towards her, its tiny golden claws glinted in the dim light.

"No!" Ignoring the searing pain coming from his leg, Blue forced himself to get up as fast as he could and launched himself at the Kabuto. He reached out his arms in an effort to grab the shellfish before it injured Fée.

Luckily, right in the nick of time, he managed to just barely grab onto the sides of the Kabuto's shell, inches before they reached Fée's face. Roaring loudly, he swung the Kabuto away from his partner and threw it as far as he could. The Kabuto, its feet flailing around wildly, sailed through the air before striking the ceiling of the cave with a loud _crunch._

Panting heavily, Blue watched the Kabuto cautiously as it fell to the floor, twitching disturbingly. Only when the Kabuto finally stopped twitching did he let down his guard. He sighed in relief as he fell to the ground. His leg was screaming in pain, but he ignored it. He quickly turned over to his partner beside him, who was frozen in place like a statue.

"Anyone home?" Blue waved his arm in front of Fée's stunned face, "Helloooo? Fée?"

"Eeeee..." A strange noise escaped from Fée's mouth. It sounded like a cross between a whimper and a whine. Suddenly, she sprung forwards, tackling Blue and grabbing onto him in a tight hug. Tears streamed down her face as she sobbed into his shoulder. Blue, a little stunned, consoled her by gently patting her back.


	3. Don't call yourself a coward!

**•   
Chapter 3 **

**"Don't call yourself a coward!"  
**

"Are you feeling better now?"

I sniffled as I climbed out of Blue's arms. I felt ashamed and angry at myself for breaking down in tears again, despite telling myself to be brave before. Was I just lying to myself? Was that feeling of bravery just a mistake?

"Y-...yeah..." I mumbled as I wiped the tears from my eyes.

"That's good." Blue gave a sigh of relief and smiled at me. I tried to return his smile, but found that I couldn't really bring myself to do so. I laid down on the rocky floor, clinging to my self-loathing, ignoring the fact that Blue was watching.

"Hey...Blue?" I muttered quietly while staring at the floor, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead."

"Why did you decide to come in here?"

"Hm?" He sounded confused, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, why are you helping me?" I clarified, "We just met, and we barely even know each other."

"You even got hurt trying to protect me." I nervously glanced at his right leg. The Kabuto that had clamped on to his leg earlier had left four reddish scars on his leg. Blue probably sensed my gaze, as he quickly shifted his right leg out of sight.

"It doesn't really hurt that much," He said spiritedly, but I could hear the pain in his voice as he tried to hide his injury, "You don't have to worry about it at all."

"It's okay Blue," I said, covering my head under my paws, "you don't have to go along with this anymore. My...rock isn't worth hurting yourself to get it back. Not for a coward like me."

I felt a wave of disgust wash through me as I choked out that sentence. Did I really mean to say that? I could feel the flame of courage inside my flicker and wane as I continued to send myself deeper into a pit self-depreciation.

"Let's...let's just give up."

Blue fell silent. For a while, the only sounds around us were the sound of water dripping in the distance and the occasional scrabbling noise from the Kabuto stuck back in the watery chamber. The longer the silence went on, the greater my unease became. I wondered, did I anger him? Offend him? Or did I just disappoint him? Regardless, I knew that I had definitely betrayed his expectations with my cowardice.

"You're wrong, Fée." I felt a sudden pat on my back, followed by a thumping noise. I tentatively raised my head and saw that Blue had sat down next to me. He patted me on the back once more and looked directly in my eyes.

"What do you mean?" I asked, a little bewildered by his response.

"First, I think I should apologize to you – again." He said while scratching the back of his head, "I didn't really give you much of a choice back there. I just dragged you in here without even asking you. I wasn't thinking about your feelings."

"And, I guess I didn't really give you much of an explanation before setting off, huh?"

"No...no you didn't." I accidentally mumbled out loud. He gave a little dry chuckle before continuing.

"When I had that strange headache back on the beach, I told you I somehow ended up on a rainy beach, didn't I?"

"Yeah, you did." I recalled the strange experience earlier, "You didn't really explain what happened though."

"I know, and I'm sorry." He sighed loudly, as if he was regretting what he did earlier, "Back on that rainy beach, I didn't really understand what was happening. Even though the sky was pouring rain, I was still dry as a whistle, and I couldn't even feel the winds blow against me. It was...strange. To say the least."

"When I looked around the beach, I found something that confused me even more."

"What was it?" I asked, growing more and more curious at his story.

"It was you." He stated firmly, jabbing a finger at me.

"–huh?" I was, understandably, even more confused now.

"Well, to be exact, it was you and two other Pokémon I didn't know." He used his finger to trace some shapes in the sand on the cave floor, "They looked like a strange, bloated looking balloon and a –"

"A bat?" I said, accidentally interrupting him. He nodded and finished his sketch. Even in the dim light of the cave, I could recognize what he drew.

"Koffing and Zubat..." I said, staring at his drawing.

"Is that what they're called?"

I looked up at him and nodded.

"I see. That makes things a little easier, I was probably going to call the fat one gasbag if you didn't tell me that."

He grinned at me as he drew a silly mustache on Koffing's sketch. Despite myself, I felt a giggle escape my mouth as I watched him continue to deface their portraits.

"Anyway, I watched from a distance as they argued with each other over a bag that looked way too girly for them." I blushed when I heard that, thinking back to my bag, "Then, everything faded white."

"When my vision returned, I saw you on the ground. The two of the – Koffing and Zubat – were hovering over you and spewing out all sorts of nonsense at you."

I gulped as I recalled that scene. The insults the two bullies called me, they didn't feel like nonsense to me at the time.

"At that time, I got mad." He quickly said, cutting off my recollection, "So I ran over and tried to slug the gasbag in the dumb face."

"But, it didn't work." He muttered with a grimace on his face as he scribbled all over Koffing's portrait on the ground, "When I threw a punch, my fist just flew through his body, like he wasn't even there."

"No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't do anything to the two of them. I could only stand and watch, unable to stop them from stealing your treasure and running away."

He slammed the ground with his fist, scattering sand and pebbles into the air. When he lifted his arm, the drawing of Koffing had transformed into a small crater. I could hear the Kabuto in the distance clamoring when they heard the noise. Blue noticed it too and quickly turned to me.

"It's not safe here. Let's move to somewhere farther away." He whispered urgently, trying to keep his voice as low as possible to keep the Kabuto from hearing us.

I nodded. Even I knew how dangerous it would be if we stayed here for any longer. But, as we prepared to leave, Blue suddenly grunted and knelt. He clutched his injured leg painfully.

"It's okay, I'm – I'm fine." He gritted his teeth and lied. He tried to stand up again, but the injures on his right leg only got worse as he tried to move it. He gasped and nearly fell over again. I quickly rushed over and supported him before he fell over. He gave me a small, but pained looking smile as I let him lean against me.

"Blue..." I couldn't believe how much pain he was putting himself through just to help me. Even when I wanted to just let it go, he still wanted to help me. I felt ashamed at myself again, but for a different reason this time.

"Fée," Blue said as we slowly moved forward, "I know you're scared, and I'm sorry for not noticing that earlier."

"Before I woke up from my strange vision, the last thing I saw was your crying face." He frowned as he continued his recollection, "I felt... horrible inside, seeing you cry like that. I felt like it was my fault that I couldn't prevent you from being hurt."

"Blue...it's not your fault..." I replied, turning away from Blue and hanging my head down "If it was anyone's fault, it's mine. It was my fault for being such a coward."

As I finished saying that, I felt a sharp bonk on my head. Surprised, I quickly turned to face Blue. He had an angry look on his face, and his arm was hovering over my head.

"Don't call yourself a coward!" He chided me angrily.

"It's the truth though!" I stammered back, matching his angry tone with my own, "I'm a coward! I'm weak!"

"Fée, you're much stronger than you think." He said, his voice softening a bit, "I might not know the whole story, but I know for a fact that you, Fée, had the courage to confront the two of them."

"So what? They still got away! The same thing would've happened even if I wasn't there! It wouldn't have made a difference!"

My emotions were in a fever pitch now. I was angry at Blue. I didn't want him to deny that I was a coward. It felt like everything he said was a lie.

Then, at the same time, a feeling of disgust flooded my body. Did I want him to say I was weak? That I couldn't have done anything anyway? I didn't understand my own emotions, and all I could do was keep yelling at my friend.

"It did make a difference." He said in an infuriatingly calm voice.

"Tell me then! What difference did I make by being there?"

"You saved my life."

When I heard that, it was like someone had suddenly pulled a drain inside me. I felt my rising anger rapidly ebb away. I stared at Blue with my mouth open, thinking about what to say, but my mind was wiped blank along with my anger.

"I might not remember anything before I woke up, but there's one thing I'm certain about."

He suddenly stopped walking and separated himself from me. I turned around and looked at him. Even though we were surrounded by the darkness of the cave, far, far away from the bright chamber behind us, I could see his face as if it was bright as day inside. He had on his face a bright, sincere smile.

"It's that this brave, strong hero standing next to me right now had saved my life."

I didn't know how to respond. I wanted to refute him, and say that he was wrong. That there was no way anyone could call me a hero, much less a brave one. But, one look at his face, his genuine smile, immediately melted away all of my self-hating thoughts.

* * *

What was I truly afraid of?

I thought back to earlier today, to when I first woke up. I remember holding my treasure, hoping that it would grant me enough confidence to help me fulfill my dream.

My dream... I had a dream. I wanted to become an Explorer, didn't I?

I looked down at my paw. In my mind, I imagined the broken badge I had so callously thrown away earlier. I was mad, mad at myself for being such a coward. If I had just a little more courage, would I have been able to grasp my dream? No. This whole time, I've been making excuses for myself.

Every time I stood in front of the Guild's entrance... and when I tried to confront the bullies...I always backed off when it became difficult. I blamed my cowardice instead of trying to overcome it. I've always asked for bravery, but I never strived for it. I've always ran away instead of confronting it.

I thought about Blue. I didn't understand him at first. I didn't understand why he wanted to enter the Beach Cave, and I couldn't understand why he wanted to keep going even after he got injured. I didn't understand why he would do all of this for someone he just met. Everything he did felt foreign and confusing to me.

But now, I understand. Blue didn't need a reason. He was simply following what his heart told him. When he had that vision of me and the bullies, he had made the decision to help me, no matter what. Even when I said we should give up, he refused to back down. Even when he was injured, he still wanted to keep going.

Now, I know. Courage will never come to me as long as I kept running and hiding. If I keep trying to justify myself as a coward, I will always be a coward. If...if I really want to be brave, I have to be like Blue. I have to swallow my fears and keep moving. Even if the going gets rough, I cannot just give up and stop.

I'll keep moving forwards. I'll keep this flame of courage alive, and I'll never call myself a coward again.

"...Blue."

"Yeah?"

"I – I want to keep going."

Slowly, I walked back to Blue's side. I looked up at him, my face filled with new-found determination. Wordlessly, he smiled at me and held out his paw. I grasped it with my own.

"I'm sorry." I said, trying to make amends, "I'm sorry for being angry and for, well, being a co–"

Suddenly, he tugged on my arm and pulled me into a firm hug, interrupting me from saying that word.

"It's alright." He said in a reassuring voice, "You don't have to say it."

* * *

After our little incident, we continued to explore the Beach Cave together. Blue's leg was still injured, so I was supporting him as we walked through the dark tunnels. For a while, he kept trying to convince me that his leg was fine, and that I didn't need to act as his crutch anymore. But, every time he let go of me, he either wobbles in place or falls over. After the third time he nearly face-planted into the ground, he just wordlessly accepted my help and stopped asking.

It wasn't an easy task. The dark tunnels were rarely straight paths, and the ground became more and more rugged the farther in we walked. Oftentimes we found our progress slowed to a crawl thanks to the ground becoming uneven and difficult to walk on. And even more frustrating was when the path splits into two or more, and the path we chose takes us to a dead end.

The terrain wasn't the only danger we had to face too. Every once in a while, we felt dangerous and unseen presences around us, not unlike the Kabuto from before. That was usually sign that we should hurry up and get moving, as, with Blue's injury, we didn't have many ways to fight off any attackers.

Every once in a while, we came across large, open chambers like before. Without any hordes of wild Pokémon chasing us, we used these places as much-welcomed resting points. The sound of gently flowing water and the sight of sunlight was usually enough to make us rush towards it as fast as we could.

Eventually, I found myself enjoying the journey more and more. I was still scared of what lied inside the cave, of anything that could've jumped us from within the shadows, or anything that was hiding just beyond that turn in the tunnels. But, as long as I stood by my partner, I realized that I had nothing to be afraid of. Just him being beside me was a comforting presence.

Now, with every tunnel we explore, and every path we take, I no longer felt crippling fear. Instead, I felt excitement run through my body like an electric shock.

"So...this is what exploring feels like..." I said to myself while we rested in another large rest chamber. A few hours had passed since we escaped from the Kabuto earlier, and we were feeling a little tired from our expedition.

"Hm?" Blue looked up from his leg. It was slowly getting better, and he could walk on it now. Albeit a little clumsily, "Did you say something?"

"I was just thinking out loud." I replied, "I was just a little surprised that I would be having this much fun while wandering around a scary cave like this."

I stretched out in the middle of the chamber, allowing the last remaining rays of the sun to warm me up. Night was about to fall soon, and once that happens, the chambers we've used as resting zones will be just as dark as the tunnels we've walked through.

"Hey, Blue?" I turned around and watched Blue wash his leg under one of the small waterfalls in the chamber, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead."

"What will you do once we're done here?"

"What do you mean?"

I pondered for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to phrase my question. Now that I think about it, Blue was still a complete enigma. I found him floating in the ocean, and when I rescued him, he had no memory. Did he have a family? Was he a part of an exploration that went wrong? All these questions swam around in my head, each more curious than the last.

"Well, what I mean is –mffggh!"

Suddenly, Blue's arm shot out and covered my mouth, silencing me immediately. I mumbled in protest, but Blue put one finger up to his mouth and made a shushing noise. He let go of my face and cupped his paws around his ear, as if trying to hear something.

"...fault..."

My ears perked up. There was definitely a strange, unfamiliar sound coming from the distance somewhere. I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the foreign sound.

"...hoh hoh..."

"...you idiot...!"

When I opened my eyes, I saw Blue standing up. We both shared a knowing look and began to slowly move towards the owners of the sounds.

We climbed on to one of the ledges that surrounded our chamber and found a large hole in the wall that connected to another, but smaller, chamber below it. From our vantage point, we peered through the hole and found our targets.

"We're gonna be stuck here all night now!" Zubat shouted as he smacked his partner over the head with his wing, "And it's all your fault!"

"Woah, hoh, hoh! I warned you about hiding in here, Zubs!" With surprising speed, considering his size, Koffing dodged Zubat's attack and hovered lazily away. "Now we can't leave here until the Kabuto go to sleep. And I've never seen them sleep before! Woah, hoh, hoh!"

"That's not funny, you idiot!" The bat-like Pokémon screeched, "If we can't get out of here, then what was the point of going in this deep in the first place?!"

"You were the one who woke the Kabuto with your screeches, not I! Woah, hoh, hoh!" Koffing chuckled as he deftly avoided another wing attack from Zubat, "If you hadn't started shouting, then they never would've started to attack us!"

"And if you weren't being such an idiot with that rock, then I wouldn't have had to yell at you!"

"You try balancing that brat's rock without arms, it's pretty hard!"

"I don't have arms!"

"Whaddya know? Neither do I! Woah, hoh, hoh!"

We watched as the two butted heads against each other for a few minutes before drawing back into our chamber.

"That's them." Blue said matter-of-factly, "Do you see your treasure anywhere?"

"Yeah," I craned over and peeked back out towards them, "It's lying on the ground between them."

"Okay then." Blue straightened up and cracked his knuckles. I gave him a quizzical look, wondering what he was planning.

"Blue, you're not thinking of taking them on by yourself, are you?"

"It's just an ugly balloon and a tiny bat, what do I have to be afraid of?" He said cheekily while giving me a thumbs up, "Besides, my leg's feeling better. I'm sure I can take care of this, no sweat."

"W–wait!" I shouted at him, but he was already gone. He leapt through the hole and into their chamber. I watched in horrified silence as he landed between the two bullies without as much as a single word to any of them. He bent down and picked up my treasure while Zubat and Koffing were still stunned by his sudden appearance.

"W–w–who the heck are you?!" Zubat was the first to recover from the shock. He flapped angrily as Blue examined my treasure. He gave Zubat a dismissive glance and began to walk back towards the entrance to the chamber.

"Don't ignore me!" Zubat, now probably steaming in anger, screeched at Blue and began to dive at him with incredible speed. Blue, however, simply spun around on one leg – his good leg – and avoided Zubat's speedy attack.

When Zubat realized that he had missed, he quickly stopped and turned around to try another attempt. But Blue was quicker on the draw, and had flung my treasure directly into Zubat's face right as he turned around.

"Guaagh!" Zubat cried out in pain as the rock slammed right into his body, knocking him right out of the air. Blue calmly walked over and caught the rock as it rebounded off Zubat's face. He ignored Zubat, who was flailing around on the ground in pain, and began to walk away again.

"K–Koffing!" Zubat, his voice cracking from the pain, screamed at his partner, "Hurry up and stop him!"

Blue spun around as soon as he heard Zubat screech. Koffing, who was simply floating in the air earlier and chuckling to himself, had launched himself into a full-body tackle at Blue. Noxious fumes were spewing out of his many holes as he zoomed through the air.

"Woah, hoh, hooooh!" Koffing chortled as he flew towards Blue. Blue quickly threw up his arms in a defensive pose, preparing himself for the inevitable impact.

"Too slow!" Koffing suddenly made an instantaneous stop in midair and opened his gaping mouth wide. The noxious balloon suddenly shrunk as plumes and plumes of toxic smog came billowing out of his maw, right through Blue's guard.

I could hear Blue cough painfully as he inhaled the poisonous gas. From behind Koffing, Zubat had recovered and was flapping his wings wildly, spreading the gas around the room. Eventually, the gas coming out of Koffing's mouth began to fill up their chamber more and more. I found my vision of the battle disappear when the brown gasses completely covered the air.

"Meh, heh, heh!" I heard Zubat's annoying laugh through the smoke, "How do you like our Gust and Poison Smog special?"

"Woah, hoh, hoh! Too bad this only works in caves like this, hoh!"

"Stop talking and start spewing more gas!"

"Grrgh...!"

I couldn't see, and I knew that jumping in now would be an incredibly foolish idea, but I couldn't just leave Blue in there to suffer. I paced around my hole in a panic, desperately trying to think up a plan to save Blue.

"It's rare to see a Riolu around there parts, eh?" I heard Zubat say through the smoke, "I heard Riolu are supposed to be strong and fast! Why not drop the rock and join us, eh? I'll even forgive you for the rock and put in a good word for you with the boss."

"Hoh, hoh! You're so generous, Zubat!"

"You – cough – wish!"

I heard a smacking noise. Zubat must've hit Blue with his wing for talking back.

"You're an idiot!" Zubat screeched, "Then tell me, why are you here? You looked like you had a plan in mind, stealing our ro..."

"Zubat?"

"Don't tell me..." Zubat's voice became incredibly low and sinister sounding, "Did that Eevee – that brat – set you up for this?"

"Cough, cough..."

"Oh my, she did! Meh, heh, heh, heh!"

"Woah, hoh, hoh!"

I felt my blood run cold when he said that. What was he going to do now that he realized that it was my fault? I worriedly peered through the hole again, but a quick whiff of the noxious smog forced my head back, making me retch painfully.

"Is she here? In this cave, right now?" Zubat demanded, "Koffing, go find that Eevee! Find her and bring her here so we can show her what happens when someone tries to mess with us!"

"Woah, hoh, hoh. Aye, aye, Zubat!"

"W – wait!" Blue sputtered, but was quickly silenced by another smacking noise.

The smog began to slowly dissipate as Koffing began to search around for me. Terrified, I hid behind the wall and tried to make myself as inconspicuous as possible. Unfortunately, the leftover smog had reached the hole and was starting to spill into this chamber as well. I couldn't hold my breath for long, and after a few minutes, I had no choice but to take a breath.

"Gack, cough, cough!" I choked loudly as the disgusting fumes entered my mouth.

"Zubat, I heard her! She's beyond the wall!" My blood ran cold when I heard Koffing's announcement. I quickly covered my mouth, but it was too late. Within seconds, I saw a spherical silhouette float into view from beyond the hole in the wall.

I really had no choice now. I braced myself for the inevitable.

"Found you!" Koffing chortled gleefully as he floated through the hole, wreathed in gas like a filthy shawl, "Woah, hoh, hoh!"

"Open wide!" He opened his mouth and prepared to unleash another torrent of disgusting gas at me. But I had other plans. Gathering up all my strength, I leapt off the ground and threw myself towards Koffing. I saw his eyes widen the split second before I crashed into him, sending the both of us through the wall and tumbling into the second chamber.

"What?!" I heard Zubat screech as we crash-landed in the chamber with a heavy thump. Luckily, I landed on top of Koffing instead of the other way around, allowing me to quickly get up and go over to Blue's side.

"Blue! Are you alright?" I shouted worriedly. The smog, although lightened considerably, was still thick enough that I was choking with every word.

"Fée – cough – get out of here–!" He choked as he tried to speak. I squinted through the disgusting fog at Blue. He was kneeling on the ground, clutching his throat while coughing. His arms and torso had a few thin bruises from when Zubat struck him. I quickly turned around and put myself between Blue and the two bullies.

"Uuurgh..." Koffing slowly floated back up into the air, his eyes dazed from the fall and impact.

"You idiot! How could you let yourself be sneak attacked like that?"

"Woah...huh?" Koffing looked around, confused and unfocused. Zubat struck him over the head with his wing, which only served to make him look even more confused.

"Geehh!" Zubat spat in anger and turned to face us, "So you've decided to grow a backbone and chase after us, eh?"

I kept silent, trying to hold my breath for as long as possible until the smog completely vanishes. Zubat, on the other hand, continued his angry tirade.

"You even brought a little friend with you, huh? You knew you were too much of a coward to do it yourself, so you had to find someone to do it for you. How pathetic! Meh, heh, heh!"

Even though I knew these words were only there to intimidate me, his words still pierced me like thorns. I turned my head away and tried to block out his jeers, but he flew down next to me and spoke directly into my ear.

"And where did that take you? Nowhere! Your plan failed, coward!"

I gritted my teeth and tried to swipe at Zubat, but he saw it coming and simply swooped away, dodging my strike easily. He sniggered in midair, flapping just out of reach.

"Who said the plan failed?" Suddenly, I heard Blue's voice from behind me. He was struggling to get back up on his feet, but, despite the strain, his face was still displaying a confident grin. He clutched my treasure tightly in his right hand, which he raised up into the air to show everyone.

"We still got what we came for, didn't we, Fée?"

"Y–yeah!" I responded as confidently as I could. However, I was still feeling uneasy about the situation. Even if we had retrieved my treasure, we were still in a really bad place to be in.

And they knew it.

"Feh. So what?" Zubat sneered, completely dismissing Blue's boast, "We just have to knock you out and get it back. Right, Koffing?"

"Woah, hoh, hoh, of course!"

With that said, the two of them began to laugh evilly as they floated higher and higher. Zubat positioned himself behind Koffing with his wings outstretched. Koffing, however, retracted the holed nubs that dotted all over his body and closed his mouth. Slowly, his body began to expand in size, growing larger and larger by the second.

"Blue, what do we do?" I said in a quavery voice, "At this rate, they're going to fill the room with gas again!"

Blue stared up at the floating pair with a steely gaze. He pulled me close and whispered into my ear.

"Don't worry. I have a plan." He declared, "But, I need you to distract them for a second."

"A–are you sure?"

He nodded and let me go. I gulped and strode forward, placing myself directly in between Blue and the pair. I looked up at Koffing. He was almost triple his original size now. Small wisps of noxious gas was starting to spill out of his mouth. It was a terrifying sight, to say the least.

"S-stop!" I weakly shouted.

"It's too late!" Zubat screeched merrily as he poked his head over Koffing's expanding body, "You're going to be blown away by our great explosive smog attack!"

He then dove behind Koffing and started to flap his wings as hard as he could, whipping up gusts of wind at me and Blue. I stood my ground, however, and continued to shout futilely at them.

Then, Koffing opened his mouth. Inside, I saw nothing but a raging storm of poisonous, brown gas. Slowly, the deadly toxin crawled out of Koffing's mouth and was picked up by the gusts of wind created by Zubat. The gas transmogrified into a brown tendril that snaked its way towards me like a predator. Even before it reached me, I could smell the deadly stench emanating from it. I nearly fainted on the spot.

"Spew on this, you stupid beach ball!" But then, Blue's loud shout rang out through the entire chamber. Suddenly, a gray blur came whizzing through the air, blowing apart the poisonous tentacle and striking dead center into Koffing's mouth.

"Geeeh?!" Zubat shouted in surprise as the heavy rock struck the back of Koffing's mouth, knocking him backwards and – more importantly, forced him down on to the ground in shock. In his surprise, Koffing's mouth shut as the rock clattered around inside his head.

"Mrghppgh?!" Koffing's eyes bulged out as the gasses – now without an exit – raged angrily inside his body.

"Gaaah! What did you do?!" Zubat stopped his frantic flapping and shouted at us, "Koffing you numbskull, why didn't you release the smog faster?! Hurry up and open your mouth again!"

I sat there, dumbfounded at what just happened. It took me a moment to realized that I was this close to taking a faceful of that vile, disgusting concoction that came from within that beach ball's body. Inwardly, I felt revolted, and I nearly retched at the thought of it.

"Fée!" I was jolted out of my revulsion by Blue's shout, "Don't let him open his mouth again! Hit them now!"

Shaking off my nausea, I nodded back at him and crouched down. I watched Zubat try and force Koffing's mouth open with his wings, but the rock that was undoubtedly clattering around inside his head was causing him too much pain for him to open his mouth. Slowly, the two of them drifted ever lower. Then, once Koffing's body had floated low enough...

"Noooow!" I shouted at the top of my lungs as I kicked off the ground and threw myself towards them as hard as I could. Everything around me suddenly turned into a blur as I tore through the air, but it didn't matter. All I needed to see was what was in front of me!

That massive purple target!

I felt my head crash against Koffing's gut, directly on to the skull and crossbones. Everything felt like it was in slow motion afterward. His body undulated and squished in, making me feel like I had smashed myself into a stinky, disgusting pillow. It felt like an eternity.

"Meeaaaagh!"

"Woaaaaagh!"

Then, as if time suddenly restarted, Koffing was suddenly launched away from me at a ridiculous speed. His body crashed into Zubat, who was floating behind him before, and carried him along for the ride. The two of them went zooming away from us, flying towards the opposite end of the chamber. Then a loud, booming crash rang out through the chamber, followed by a massive explosion of dust and silt.

I fell on to the ground, skidding forwards for a few inches. When I finally stopped, I dazedly rose up and looked around. My jaw dropped when I saw what happened at the other end of the chamber.

"I...uh..." I was completely stunned, dumbfounded even. Koffing and Zubat weren't just knocked back, they had flown directly into the cavern wall and deeply embedded themselves within it. I gaped at the unbelievable scene before a sudden whistle snapped me out of it.

"That was incredible!" Blue walked up beside me and stared at the groaning pair in the wall, "I can't believe you just did that!"

"I...I can't believe it either..." I said as Blue walked past me. He bent down and picked up something from the ground.

"It really came in handy in the end, He said in a jovial voice as he showed me what was in his hands, "your treasure, that is."

He placed it on the ground in front of me. I took one look at it and immediately screamed in horror. My precious treasure was lying on the ground, completely covered in Koffing's disgusting sludge. Worse still, it was emanating the worst stench I've ever smelled in my entire life.

"Y – y – y..." I spluttered in disbelief, my eyes bulging at the sight of my treasure in such a disgusting state.

He threw my treasure! He threw it into that disgusting gasbag's mouth as if it was a rock! I was so infuriated and disgusted that I was at a loss for words. I could only stare at Blue with the most revolted expression I could muster.

"Uh...sorry," he muttered, now realizing the gravity of what he did, "I didn't have much of a choice! There wasn't anything else around me I could use as a projectile! I asked you to buy me time was so I could find something else to thr- ow, ow, ow!"

I rounded upon him and started pounding his chest as hard as I could with my paws. I was mad, angry, _furious_ at him!

"Ow! Fée! Stop!" He pleaded as I continued hit him, "I'm already injured! Ow!"

After a minute or two of heated pummeling, I backed off and sat down to catch my breath. Blue groaned as he picked himself up from the ground, rubbing his chest gingerly. He had an apologetic look on his face, but at the same time, he also grinned at me. I couldn't help but return his smile.

"We did it," The reality of the situation had finally dawned on me, "we beat them."

"Are you still scared, Fée?" Blue sat down next to me and patted me on the head.

"Just a little."

Blue grinned at me and I smiled back at him.

"So, what do we do with those two?" Blue said, pointing at the pair stuck in the wall.

Koffing's eyes were spinning in their sockets, while Zubat was still pinned between Koffing's body and the rock wall behind them. Without any help, those two looked like they wouldn't be able to escape for a while.

"Maybe we should just leave them there for someone else to find." Blue mused, an evil smirk crossed his face as he did so. I shook my head.

"I think we should help them out."

"Hm?" Blue sounded a little surprised, "You want to help them? After all they did to you?"

"Yeah...I know what you mean..." I replied quietly, "But if we just leave them there, wouldn't that make us just as bad as they are?"

"Hrm..." Blue pondered the thought, "I guess you have a point. It feels weird to help out our enemies though. Oh well."

In the end, he shrugged and started to walk towards the immobile pair.

"Ggghh..." I heard Zubat groan as he came to, "What...what happened?"

He tried to flap his wings, but found that he couldn't move. After a moment, he realized where he was.

"Aaagh! Koffing, you big lummox!" He screeched. I was impressed that he could still make such a shrill sound even when he was being squished like that, "Get off of me! You're crushing me!"

"Woaaah..." A dazed sound came from Koffing's mouth, "Zuuubs..."

"Geeeh!" Zubat shrieked as he futilely tried to slap Koffing over the head with his wing, "Hurry up and get it together!"

"Zuuubaaaat... I can't... I can't..."

"You can't? What do you mean you can't?! Just move, you giant gasbag!"

"Nnnnnooooo..." Koffing drawled, his voice sounding more and more strained as he tried to talk, "I mean...I can't...hold it in...anymore...!"

"W...wait, what are you...?!"

Suddenly, Koffing's body started to glow with a dim white light. The holes that surrounded his head started to pop out of his body with a sharp popping noise, and his body began to expand in size once more.

"Koffing! Stop! Don't explo–!" Zubat tried to shout, but his panicky voice was quickly silenced as Koffing's inflation completely covered him up.

"I'm soooorrryyyy...!" Koffing gurgled right before his entire body became covered in a bright light.

Blue and I glanced at each other.

"Uh oh."

The last thing I saw was Blue diving towards me. Then, everything faded to white.


	4. Let's go together

**• ****  
Chapter 4:**

**"Let's go together"**

My head throbbed painfully as I slowly awoke. It felt like hundreds of drums were banging and crashing around inside my head as I dazedly staggered to my feet. My mind was a mess, all my senses were scrambled and disoriented. My eyes couldn't focus, making the entire world look like it was constantly spinning around me. A dull, incessant noise rang inside my ears, making it difficult for me to hear anything.

As I slowly recovered, I tried to inspect myself for any injuries. My face, ruff, and front legs were all covered in a thick layer of rock dust, sand and water. Feeling incredibly uncomfortable, I weakly tried to shake the grime off my fur, but in my dazed state, I only ended up tripping over my own feet and falling face-first on to the floor.

Luckily, or maybe unluckily, the sudden shock of my face striking the rocky ground jarred my senses back into action. Pulling myself off the ground, I quickly glanced around the chamber to figure out what had happened.

The entire chamber was covered with a dense, dusty fog. Rubble of all shapes and sizes were lying all around the floor, ranging from tiny pebbles to large chunks of the walls surrounding us. Confused, I stumbled around the messy room, trying to piece together the events that happened in my mind.

"Ugh..." Suddenly, I heard a strange noise from somewhere around me. The clouds of dust that covered the room was making it difficult for me to see, so I instead closed my eyes and strained my ears to try to pinpoint where the noise was coming from.

The dull buzzing noise inside my head was making it difficult for me to focus, but soon enough, I caught the sound again. Strangely though, the sound this time came from somewhere beneath me. I turned my ears towards the ground and tried to listen again.

"Fée..." I heard someone call my name. Feeling a little eager, I lowered my head even further and listened more closely.

"Fée... It hurts..."

The sound confused me. I bent down even further and felt a strange texture brush against my ears. It was soft, and a little ticklish.

"Please... Get off..."

Feeling even more confused, I decided to open my eyes and see what it is. I looked down and saw Blue lying underneath me. His chest heaved painfully as he gasped for breath. For a second, I wondered why he was having so much trouble breathing.

Then, I realized I was standing on his body.

"Eek!" I shouted as I jumped into the air. I stammered out multiple apologies as he slowly rose from the ground.

"It's alright, no need for apologies," He said as he rubbed his head. He looked over at me and gave me a wry grin, "You weren't that heavy anyway. I barely felt anything."

I responded by gently smacking him over the head with my paw and pouting a little. He laughed and stood up from the ground, dusting himself off with his arms.

"You look pretty good in that color, Fée," Blue remarked, staring at my dust-covered fur, "gray looks good on you."

"You're not one to talk, Blue," I replied, pointing out his own dust-covered body, "I think I'd better call you Gray from now on, hee hee!"

"Hm, then I think I'll call you Gréy. How about that?"

"That sounds exactly the same as Gray!"

We shared a look with each other for a moment before we both suddenly burst into laughter. The walls around the chamber reflected our laughter, echoing our voices all around us. As we recovered from our laughing spell, I noticed that the dusty fog had lifted slightly, revealing more of the chamber. Feeling a little nervous, I glanced over to the wall where Koffing and Zubat were stuck in just a while ago.

Well, maybe it's better to say 'where the wall once was.' When Koffing exploded, he completely demolished part of the cavern wall, revealing the outside world.

Through the hole, I saw a beautiful sight. The sun had finally set, replacing the orange glow of the sky with a pure, inky blackness. Twinkling stars filled up the night sky with sparkling lights, while the shiny, glowing moon floated in the center of it all.

"Blue..." I said, staring at the wondrous sight, "It's beautiful..."

"Yeah. It is," Blue replied as he watched the stars with me.

For a while, we just watched the stars in the sky in silence. As we admired the beauty, I thought back to everything that had happened today. From my flight from the Guild, the sudden and terrifying storm, meeting Blue on the beach...

Shyly, I sneaked a glance at Blue. He was distracted by the sight of the moon and the stars outside the cave. Suddenly, a strange wave of emotion washed over me, and my vision began to blur. Soon, large tear drops began to roll down the sides of my face. I tried to wipe them away, but they just kept coming.

It was strange. I wasn't feeling sad, nor was I scared. So why am I crying?

"Fée?" Through my blurry eyes, I saw Blue turn towards me. I hurriedly tried to hide my face, "Fée? What's wrong?"

"I – I don't know...!" I sobbed, "The tears...they just don't stop..."

I kept wiping my eyes until my paws were completely drenched with salty water. I just couldn't stop crying.

"I'm not...I'm not even sad..." I hiccuped, trying to prove my point by giving him a tear-stained smile.

"Tears of happiness then," He smirked at me and walked forward. I wiped my eyes and followed his blurry figure through the chamber. We stopped right before the hole in the cavern wall. Blue, noticing something, bent down and dusted the floor with his paw.

"Aha, here we are," He smiled as he retrieved an object from underneath a pile of debris, "It's still a little dirty, but we can fix that."

I tried to make out what he was holding, but another sudden wave of tears blurred my sight again. Blue whimsically tossed the object up into the air and effortlessly caught it on the way down. Blue silently walked over to a small pool of water at the side of the chamber and crouched down. He stuck his paws into the water and began to make splashing noises. Curious, I wandered over to see what he was doing.

"Here you go, Fée," From within the clear water, even through my tear-stained eyes, I saw my precious treasure lying in the middle of the pool. Blue, after scrubbing off all the gunk and grime, pulled it out of the water and held it up against the moon. It sparkled as the moonlight reflected off its surface.

"Consider this my apology for earlier."

I felt another wave of tears gush forth from my eyes when he placed it down in front of me. It looked almost exactly like it was before it got stolen, beautiful and magnificent. Emotionally, I placed a shaking paw on my treasure's smooth surface.

"Blue..." I didn't know what to say. It felt like all my emotions were whirling around in my head like a hurricane. Sniffling, I futilely wiped my eyes again and looked up at Blue.

"You've done so – so much for me, and we've j – just met..." The tears were coming out in full force now. I shut my eyes tightly, trying to stem the flow of my tears, but they just kept coming. I just sobbed, and sobbed as a whirlwind of emotion raged inside me, "H–how can I ever th – thank you enough?"

"Fée..."

"If I hadn't met you..." I choked in between hiccups, "If I hadn't met you... I probably never would've been able to get this back...I probably never would've been able to do anything..."

"I would've just stayed...stayed at home and cried about how much of a coward I am..."

I sniffled and shook my head. Through my wet, blurry gaze, I saw Blue standing in front of me. I couldn't tell what expression he had on his face, but just the sight of him, even if it was unclear, made me cry even harder.

"And...and...!" My emotions were spilling out of my mouth in waves now, "If I hadn't met you...I never would've discovered how exciting it was to be... to be an explorer!"

I thought back to the time we spent in the tunnels. Running away from the Kabuto, navigating the dark tunnels and resting in beautiful, sunlit chambers... If I hadn't met him... I never would've been able to experience any of that. If I hadn't met him... I would've spent every day at home, wishing I was an explorer instead of truly experiencing it.

"I don't know how I can thank you, Blue...!" I kept trying to wipe my eyes, to be able to see his face clearly, but the tears kept coming and coming, "I've never been so – so happy!"

I tried to wipe my eyes again, but suddenly, Blue grabbed on to my paw. I held my breath as I felt him gently caressed my cheeks, gently wiping off all my tears. When I finally opened my eyes, I found that I could now see clearly. And the first thing I saw...was the face of my new friend.

"Fée." He said my name, "You don't have to thank me."

He placed my paw against his chest. I could feel his strong, steady heartbeat from within.

"If I hadn't met you, I wouldn't be able to sit here right now." He said softly, "You're no coward, Fée. You're a brave, strong hero."

"N...no...I–" I tried to protest, but he quieted me by placing a finger against my mouth.

"No matter what you feel, no matter how scared you are..." He grasped my paw tightly and stared directly into my eyes, "Just remember, you're much stronger than you think. So don't call yourself a coward anymore, Fée."

"I...I'm not a coward..." I mumbled quietly. Blue shook his head and grasped my paw tighter.

"I couldn't hear that."

"I...I'm not a coward."

"What was that?"

"I'm not a coward!"

"One more time!"

"I'm not a coward–!"

I shouted at the top of my lungs, bellowing it out as loud as I could. The sound echoed all around us as it bounced around the chamber. I heard my voice reflecting all around me, making me feel like there were tens, if not hundreds of Fées cheering me on.

"Blue..." I whispered when the echoes finally died down, "I'm not a coward anymore..."

He gave me a wide smile and pulled me in for a hug.

"You never were, Fée."

Then, right as I was about to close my eyes, he abruptly pushed me away. My eyes fluttered open in surprise. He then placed his paw against my forehead.

"Yow!" I yelped as he flicked my forehead with his finger. I flinched, more out of surprise than pain, at his sudden change in attitude. I winced as I rubbed my throbbing forehead. I glared at Blue, who was trying his best to stifle a snicker.

"Now cut it out with the sad stuff and go to sleep," He said as he yawned and stretched. He turned away from me and flopped on to the ground, preparing to go to sleep, "We've got a big day tomorrow. So go get some rest."

"A big day?" I felt a little annoyed, and also a little disappointed for some reason, "What do you mean?"

"Isn't it obvious?" He waved his arm around dismissively, "Aren't we going to go to your town tomorrow?

My ears perked up when I heard that. Before I could process what he said, I suddenly found myself bounding over to him and placing my paws on his side. I felt a strange sense of eagerness and elation wash over me as I stared at his sleeping face.

"You really mean it?" I said, shaking him with my paws, "You.. you want to stay with me? You want to go to Treasure Town with me tomorrow?"

"Ergh..." One of his eyes fluttered open and stared at me, "Yes, Fée. Let's go together tomorrow. Now let me go to sleep."

"Blue!" I couldn't contain my happiness. I sprung at him, paws outstretched. His eyes opened wide in surprise as we tumbled onto the ground together. I gave him a big, grateful hug while on top of him. He groaned and tried to shake me off, but I held on tightly and refused to let go.

"Thank you so much, Blue!" I shouted happily, nuzzling my face into his chest, "You're the best friend ever!"

"Aaagh, just let me sleep!"


	5. All explorers want to go on adventures!

**•   
Chapter 5:**

**"All explorers want to go on adventures!"**

I awoke to the sounds of Wingulls cawing somewhere in the distance. Feeling the morning sun shine on my face, I yawned and stretched my legs as I tried to shake off any lingering drowsiness. At first, I couldn't quite recognize where I was. But, as I looked out at the shining ocean outside, my memories of yesterday came flooding back like a tidal wave.

An uplifting feeling began to surge through my body, driving out the remaining drowsiness inside. Feeling excited, I bounced up on to my feet and skipped towards the end of the chamber. There, I stood at the hole that overlooked the sea.

In the distance, I watched as a flock of white Wingull flew by, squawking loudly as they sailed over the vast blue ocean. The sun peeked over the horizon, sending a gleaming ray of light down the center of the sea. A cool sea breeze blew into the cavern. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath as the wind gently ruffled my fur.

Feeling totally awake now, I smiled and turned around. Lying in the center of the chamber was my friend, still snoring away peacefully. Tiptoeing quietly over to where he was sleeping, I gently poked him on the cheek.

"Blue?" I whispered, "Blue, its morning now."

No response. Feeling a little daring now, I prodded his face again, but harder this time. I was rewarded with a low grumble and a small scowl forming on his face. I giggled as he tried to swat my paws away while unconscious.

"If you don't wake up, I'm gonna keep poking you."

A grumbling noise emerged from his mouth as he rolled away from me. Stifling another giggle, I placed my paws on his side and gently rocked him back and forth. It was like trying to rouse an extremely lazy child. His brow furrowed in annoyance as I kept rolling his sleeping form around like a log.

Despite how entertaining it was to annoy him while he slept, I did want him to wake up soon. Separating myself from him, I glanced around the rocky chamber to see if I could find anything to use. As I scanned around the area, a bright glint of light from far away caught my eye. Curious, I wandered over and found that it was a small pool filled with fresh water.

Feeling a little thirsty, I decided to dip my mouth in and drink my fill. The water tasted cool and sweet. While I was satisfying my thirst, a mischievous idea came into my head.

* * *

Blue found himself standing in the middle of darkness. No matter which way he looked, all he could see was an endless sea of nothing. The sky was completely black, with not even the hint of a star's twinkle or the glow of the moon. The ground, covered with a thick layer of white snow, was icy and uncomfortable to stand on. Oddly, hundreds, if not thousands of snowflakes hung in the air, not falling, completely unmoving.

He walked forward, down a road made of snow and surrounded by nothing. Every step he took made a loud crunching noise as he crushed the frozen dirt underneath his feet. Blue tried to make sense of the world he was in as he walked. Blue reached out his arm to grab a hold of one of the snowflakes frozen in the air. But as soon as his paw touched the icy shard, it suddenly shattered into pieces and vanished.

Feeling annoyed and frustrated, Blue kicked off the ground and broke into a run. Powdery snow scattered wildly behind him as he charged down the road. Darkness after darkness rushed past him as he tore up the road. Blue panted heavily as he kept pushing himself forward, desperately trying to escape the emptiness around him.

Eventually, Blue skidded to a halt as he noticed something was standing far in the distance. Suddenly, a chill rushed down Blue spine. A horrifying, massive creature ten times his size was standing in the middle of the road. With two glowing eyes, it stared down at Blue.

The beast emitted a terrifying roar and reared up on its hind legs. Blue instinctively took up a defensive stance as the monster came crashing down on him with its huge front legs. Despite blocking most of it, the incredible force of the attack still sent Blue skidding backwards. Crying out in surprise, Blue bent forward and dug his paws into the snow to slow him down.

The monster gazed down at Blue's injured form and roared again. In response, Blue snarled back angrily and launched himself towards it, his right paw balled up into a fist. He swung his fist wildly at the beast's face, intending to knock it out in one blow.

But, the blow never came. Confused, Blue looked down his arm. His fist had vanished into the body of the creature, absorbed into its black carapace.

Blue screamed in horror as he frantically tried to pull his arm out of the creature. But, before he could do anything, the beast unleashed an unearthly bellow. The force of the roar separated Blue from the creature's body and sent him flying into the air. Blue violently crashed into one of the piles of snow surrounding the area, scattering icy shards into the air. Stunned, Blue tried to drag himself out of the cold snow, but ended up rolling down the side of it. He groaned as his body struck the ground, hard.

The monster slowly encroached on the fallen Blue. It opened its mouth and began to inhale loudly. Blue, now panicking, tried to scramble on to his feet and run away. But, he only managed to get as far as a few feet away before he collapsed in pain.

He picked himself up from the ground and gazed up at the massive beast looming over him. Its eyes and mouth were both glowing a violent shade of orange.

Blue shut his eyes as the creature lunged forward.

* * *

Quietly, sneakily, and maybe just a little mean, I leaned over to take a peek at Blue's sleeping face. He had such a peaceful face on him that it was actually making me start to have second thoughts. No, I made up my mind. Taking a moment to compose myself, I slowly leaned my face over his and...

I saw a pair of red – colored eyes staring into mine. For an unusually long second, we stared at each other wordlessly.

"Wah!" Startled, I leapt backwards quickly. The water spilled all over his face, completely drenching his head and the top part of his torso. I quickly scrabbled to my feet and scooted a short distance away from him and looked away, trying to look as innocent as possible.

"Wha...what happened?" I heard him groan sleepily from behind me, "Where'd it go...?"

Curious, I turned around and saw him doing something odd. His eyes were wide open, but they looked like they were glazed over. He was wildly swinging his arms into the air, as if he was trying to punch something invisible. Every time he swung at the air, he nearly fell over from his own momentum.

Stifling a giggle, I quietly sneaked up behind him, while being mindful of his punches. I leaned in close to his ear and shouted, "Good morning, Blue!"

"Bwah?!" His entire body turned rigid like a statue, with his arms flopping down to his sides. He blinked a few times before turning around to face me, wherein I responded by giving him a great big smile

"G – good morning Fée..." He gave a big sigh and rubbed his ears gingerly, "Did you sleep well?"

"Not as well as you did, apparently!" I giggled as I watched him stagger to his feet, "Did you have a good dream?

"Dream?" He muttered in a quiet voice, "I don't know. Did I look like I was having a dream?"

"Well, you looked like you were punching somebody while you were sleeping."

"Strange, I don't remember anything about a dream." A few water droplets fell on to the ground as he patted his puzzled face, "I guess it isn't a big deal."

"Waking you up was a pretty big deal," I remarked, "You wouldn't wake up no matter what I did!"

He stared at his wet paws for a second before giving me a suspicious look, "I guess that explains why my face is soaked, hm?"

Wiping the water off his face with his paws, he kept a single droplet on his finger. He gave me an evil grin as he flicked water at me. I responded by sticking out my tongue at him playfully.

Once he dried off his face, he stood up and began to shake off his drowsiness by yawning and stretching. While he was busy waking himself up, I noticed that, as he moved, the scars on his leg and arms still looked fairly raw and reddish.

"Blue, how are you feeling?" I asked, worried about his health, "Your arms and legs, are they okay?"

Maybe he was surprised at my concern, since he glanced down at his leg and arm before quickly brushing it off, "It's nothing." He flexed a muscle, showing his healing scar, "See? I barely feel a thing anymore."

He shook his head at me and gave me a toothy grin to reassure me that it was fine. I wasn't convinced, but I gave him a small nod and sighed. Once we get back to town, maybe I can find some bandages and berries for him.

After making a mental reminder to get medical help for Blue, I wandered around the chamber trying to think about how we were going to leave this place and head back to town. Feeling daring, I wandered over to the explosion's hole and peered over the edge.

As I did so, a rough sea breeze blew against my face, ruffling my fur and making it difficult to see. From my limited vision, I spotted a small rocky ledge that stretched out underneath the hole. The ledge looked like it wrapped around the side of the cliff, and appeared stable and solid enough for us to walk on.

"Anything interesting out there?" I heard Blue call from within the chamber.

"There's a path here," I shouted back, "It's really windy outside though!"

I pulled my head back as another gust of wind flew past. As I sat down to catch my breath, Blue wandered over to the hole and leaned over to the side of the hole. While he was busy surveying the area, I rubbed my face with my paws, trying to brush my fur back in place after the wind messed it up. When I opened my eyes again, I noticed that Blue was no longer standing there.

"B – Blue?!" I screamed in shock as I leapt to my feet. I spun around in place, wondering if he was somewhere in the chamber. Then, I looked at the hole in the wall.

Panicked thoughts flew through my head as I rushed over to the hole. I stuck my head outside, fearing the worst.

"I'm down here!" I heard him shout from somewhere beneath me. I gave a relieved sigh when I saw Blue standing on the ledge beneath me. He reached up with his arms and gestured for me to join him on the ledge.

"This ledge connects all the way around the cliff," He said, pointing over to his right, "If we keep going this way, we'll probably end up somewhere around the beach."

Going around the cliff did seem like a faster way back home than going backwards through the cave again. However, as I looked down at the ledge, the ocean was right below us. I gulped as I saw a wave crash against the cliff side violently, sending a spray of seawater up into the air.

"Fée, are you alright?" I was jarred out of my imagination by Blue's voice. I shook my head and slapped the sides of my face. I'm a different Fée from yesterday. I can do this!

But, right as I was about to leap down, a sudden thought ran through my mind.

"Oh, hold on Blue," I called down at him, "Give me just a moment, okay?"

He nodded and sat down on the ledge, "Take your time, I'm in no hurry."

I quickly turned around and ran back to where we were sleeping. There, I spotted my treasure lying on the ground, glinting brightly in the sunlight. Inwardly, I scolded myself for almost forgetting to pick up my precious treasure before leaving. Hurriedly, I snatched it up with my mouth and brought it over to the edge.

"Bwoo!" I shouted in a muffled voice, "Pwease holf on to disph!"

Gently, I dropped my treasure down on to the ledge. After Blue picked it up and nodded at me, I prepared to drop down. Taking it slowly, one step at a time, I lowered myself on to the ledge. Thankfully, the ledge was covered with a thin layer of grass, making it easy to walk on. Once I got all my feet firmly on the ledge, I looked at Blue and nodded.

"Alright, let's go." He returned my nod and moved towards the side of the cliff. Nervously, I followed him while also keeping close to the wall. I tried as hard as I could to ignore the fact that I was walking on a rocky path that was floating several feet above the ocean. Taking another deep gulp, I shook my head and put on a brave face.

* * *

"It's the beach!"

Sand went flying all over the place as I dived joyfully on to the beach. I scooped up the warm white sand to my chest and rolled over on to my back, hugging it tightly.

"Come on Fée," While upside – down, I saw Blue slowly climb off the ledge and drop on to the beach with a small thump. He knelt beside me and playfully nudged me on the forehead, grinning, "The trip wasn't that bad."

"Says you!" I retorted, rolling right – side up and throwing a pawful of sand at him, "I felt like I was walking on pins and needles the whole time!"

"I dunno," He grinned and patted my head as he dusted the sand off his face, "I thought it was pretty exciting."

"You say that, but I saw you shaking when we were half – way across." I grabbed his arm on my head with both paws and gave him a coy smirk, "You must've been pretty 'excited' that your legs were shuddering like jelly!"

"It was just the wind," He replied nonchalantly, but I spotted the faint blush appearing on his cheeks and smiled wider, "It was cold up there, you know?"

"Hee, hee," I giggled knowingly and let go of his paw. I rolled around on the sand a few times, feeling happy for no real reason. Blue just sighed in defeat and shrugged. After I had covered my fur with a thin layer of sand, I stood up and glanced around the beach, shaking the sand off me.

The beach looked exactly the same as it did before we entered the cave. All the debris, seaweed and other junk still covered a large portion of the shore, making the place look like a total mess. A small palm tree even got knocked down sometime during the storm, separating the beach into two halves with its trunk.

Blue had wandered over to the fallen tree and crossed over to the other side. I just about started to follow him when I suddenly noticed something moving within the palm tree's fronds. Curious, I took a detour and stopped in front of the leafy top of the tree instead. It shuddered and shook on its own as if it was alive. I was just about to push aside one of the large leaves when suddenly, a black blur shot out from within the fronds.

"Eep!" Startled, I fell on my back, scattering even more sand everywhere. I quickly scrambled back on to my feet and looked back at the palm tree. A slimy – looking black hand was moving around the fronds like a creepy tentacle. A few seconds later, another slimy hand exited the bushy fronds. Both hands worked together to push aside the leaves, revealing their owner.

"Ku, hu, hu..." A creepy – looking Pokémon I didn't recognize emerged from the fronds. He was dark blue with a white stripe around his belly. His two shifty yellow eyes kept rapidly looking around as he slowly pulled himself free from the leaves.

Spooked, I took a cautious step back as the creepy stranger glanced around, making strange 'ku hu hu' noises as he did so. A chill ran down my spine when he suddenly locked eyes with me.

"Ohhhh..." He said in a low, drawling voice, "Sorry... I didn't know there were other people here... ku, hu, hu..."

"Uh, um..." I was seriously creeped out, and the way he was staring at me didn't help. I nervously looked around, hoping to find Blue nearby, but he wasn't anywhere to be found.

The stranger made another 'ku hu hu' noise and turned his back to me. He brushed aside the fronds of the fallen palm tree and looked as though he was digging around inside it for something. My curiosity overriding my nervousness, I craned my head to see what he was doing.

"Ku, hu, hu," There was that creepy laugh again, and it sent another chill down my spine. The Pokémon turned around, and this time he was holding something pink in his right hand. It looked strangely familiar to me.

"...ah!" I blurted out accidentally without thinking, "That's my bag!"

"Ku...?" His eyes slowly moved to look at his hand, "This is yours?"

I nodded. It was the very same bag that Koffing and Zubat stole yesterday. I felt a little pang of regret as the torn straps fluttered sadly in the wind. The stranger rotated his head and stared at my bag for an uncomfortably long amount of time before making another creepy 'ku' noise.

"What a pity..." He mumbled disappointingly, closing his eyes and shaking his head, "It's a pretty nice bag."

"Um..." I guess I got complimented. I did make that bag myself after hours and hours of painstaking work. He doesn't know that though...I hope.

"Ku, hu, hu..." He made that noise again and carelessly flung my bag into the air. It landed in front of me with a light thump, "Here you go then..."

Without taking my eyes off him, I slowly bent down and picked up my bag with my teeth. After being on the beach for an entire day, the bag tasted like salty seawater. When I looked back up to give the stranger my thanks, he had already vanished back in to the palm tree's fronds. But not before leaving me with another 'ku hu hu' as the fronds closed behind him.

Feeling a strange combination of gratitude and uneasiness, I slowly backed away from the top of the palm tree until I was a fair distance away. Then, I ran towards the other side of the beach as fast as I could without looking back. Once I was far enough away, I sighed and let the bag drop from my mouth.

"I guess he wasn't such a bad guy after all," I mumbled to myself, taking quick glance over my shoulder. The Pokémon's strange chuckle rang inside my mind again as I did so, sending another wave of chills down my spine.

"Fée?" I looked up and saw Blue walking towards me, still holding on to my treasure, "Fée, what's taking you so long?"

"It's...um," I sneaked a quick peek at the palm tree before responding, "It's nothing. Where did you go?"

"I thought I saw something weird sneak by," He said, looking curious while he scratched the back of his head, "Did you see it? It was blue and kept making this weird 'ku hu hu' noise with its mouth."

"Um..." I took another speedy glance at the shaking fronds behind us before shaking my head, "No, I didn't see anything creepy like that.

"Creepy?" Blue repeated, looking suspicious.

I shook my head furiously, "No, no! It's nothing! You just – uh – made it sound really creepy with the way you described it, that's all."

"Well...alright then," He said as he dropped the subject, still looking a little disbelieving. I sighed in relief. I didn't really know why I lied about meeting that weird Pokémon. Maybe I just didn't want to think about him anymore than I had to. Blue picked up my pink bag with his other hand.

"Oh, that's –," I began to say.

"I remember this," He interrupted, holding my bag up to the sun, "It's the bag that those two jerks stole from you, right?"

"Yeah," I replied, "I just – uhm – found it on the beach a few minutes ago."

Blue grinned and opened my bag before remarking, "This'll make things easier by a lot."

He took my precious treasure and put it back inside the bag. Then, after making sure the flap was tightly closed, he took the two torn up straps and tied them back together.

"Here Fée, lean your head down for a sec,"

I obliged. He leaned down and put the newly repaired strap around my neck. He spent a few seconds adjusting it so it didn't look strange. Once he finished, I sat down and held it up with my paws. A sense of gratitude washed through me when I let go and felt the bag stay on my body. The straps weren't well tied, and the bag was oddly balanced around my neck. But, such things didn't matter to me.

"I love it!" I said gratefully as I spun around on the spot, admiring his handiwork. He scratched his nose sheepishly as I circled around him joyfully.

"It's just a quick patch job," He remarked nonchalantly, "I'm sure someone else can fix it up better than I could."

I just smiled at Blue and gleefully bounded off with it bouncing around my neck. Even if it wasn't really fixed, it still felt great to have my old bag around with me again. Then, I realized that I should thank the Pokémon who found it for me as well. I spun around and looked at the palm tree.

"Thank you!" I shouted as loud as I could. Blue looked confused and turned to look at the palm tree to see who I was shouting at, but the weird Pokémon didn't appear. Still, I felt like he probably heard it. I cheerfully walked up to Blue and poked him to get his attention.

"Come on Blue!" I said cheerfully, feeling even more energetic than before, "Let's go to Treasure Town. I'll show you around!"

Blue still had a confused expression on his face as I happily ran off towards the path that lead towards Treasure Town. I turned around and waved at him to follow me before continuing on. I heard Blue shout something like 'hey wait,' but I was getting that mischievous feeling again and pretended to not hear him.

"Hee, hee!"

* * *

Treasure Town was originally but a humble rest stop built by a group of explorers intending on using the area as a resting point in between expeditions. Surrounded by craggy mountains and the vast sea, the rest stop was practically a necessity for the explorers as they sought out fame, fortune and adventure in the dangerous frontier surrounding the area.

Then, as the numbers of explorers grew, the small rest stop had become a tiny settlement. By that point, the settlement became famous among aspiring young explorers as being 'the' place to be for exploring, inciting even more Pokémon to make pilgrimages to the so-called "Frontier Town of Treasure." The group of explorers that originally founded the settlement became known as the Great Explorers, and the tales of their expeditions became legends within the settlement.

As more and more new blood migrated to the settlement, it was only natural that it eventually grew into the Treasure Town we know now. Today, over hundreds of Pokémon now reside within the town, and many more that just visit. Not all of them are explorers, of course. Many Pokémon immigrated to Treasure Town seeking other things like business, the romance of adventure, or just the experience of living in a bustling frontier city.

As for the explorers of today. Many explorers have formed teams or guilds within the town, bringing together Pokémon of all kinds and temperaments to go on expeditions to the vast, untamed lands that surround the town. But one guild stands leagues above the rest, and that is the guild founded by one great explorer known as Wigglytuff.

Wigglytuff's Guild is famous far and wide, even beyond the borders of Treasure Town. The guild is known by many as "the greatest guild in the world," or "the guild that everyone wishes they can become someday," or even "that guild that I wish would stop being so good at exploring so we can actually get a chance at getting some treasure sometime, dagnabbit!"

And they're famous for a good reason as well, as Wigglytuff's Guild is the only guild in Treasure Town that has not only explored every and all lands around the Town, but have completely mapped them as well! An incredible feat that was only said to have been done by the original founders of the town. Very few other guilds can claim to have done more than two full expeditions in their lifetimes.

Regardless, it goes without saying that for explorers of today and of the future; Treasure Town is the greatest place to be an explorer!

* * *

"I see..." Blue mused thoughtfully as I finished my lecture on the history of Treasure Town.

After we had exited the beach, we entered a small side path that snaked through a copse of trees that was nearby to the town. I had told Blue everything I knew about Treasure Town as we walked through the forest. It was surprising to me when he suddenly asked me about Treasure Town. I expected him to at least had known about one of the biggest towns in the world!

"You're pretty knowledgeable about this stuff, Fée," He remarked with an amused look on his face. I blushed and denied him by shaking my head.

"I just like reading, that's all." I admitted, "There's a big library in town that's filled with all sorts of books that Pokémon bring in."

I gave a little prideful sniff, "I always make sure to read everything new that comes in every day."

Blue laughed and scratched his head sheepishly, "I don't think I was a very good reader then. Otherwise I probably wouldn't have lost my memory."

I gave him a worried look as he gave a wry chuckle, "Blue..."

"Oh don't look at me like that," He said, slapping me on the back and grinning, "It was just a joke. A joke!"

He must've noticed that I looked unconvinced, since he slapped me on the back again and said, "So! Fée, why don't you teach me a thing or two about what explorers do then?" He grinned at me and shrugged, "Fill me in about things I don't know, teacher!"

"Oh!" My ears perked up when I heard him call me teacher. Giddily, I began another lecture, "Well, there's a lot of things explorers do!"

A small stump was lying on the side of the road ahead of us. Feeling oddly exuberant, I rushed over to the stump and stood on top of it. Clearing my throat, I conjured up as much information as I could about my favorite subject.

"Explorers are probably the most important of all Pokémon in Treasure Town," I lectured as Blue sat down in front of me with a bemused grin on his face, "You could say they even make up the backbone of the town itself!"

"As for what they do, you can probably tell by their name," I continued energetically, "Explorers primarily go off into the world and – well – explore!"

"There's so many places out there in this world that lie unknown and unexplored to us all," I paused dramatically, "But luckily, Treasure Town was built right in the center of this great, mysterious frontier. So explorers from all over the world come to Treasure Town, since it's so close to so many places to explore!"

I stopped when I saw a blue hand raise from the ground. Giggling a little, I pointed at Blue, who was raising his hand like a dutiful student.

"Yes, question from the Riolu at the front!"

"Well, explorers explore, as you said," Blue commented, lowering his hand, "But what do they get out of exploring?"

"Good question!" I was feeling bubbly inside by how much fun this was, "Many explorers have their own reasons for exploring! Some just want to go out and become famous by discovering new and amazing places, others dive into caves and dungeons for the chance of finding hidden treasure. But there's one thing that all explorers strive for as they travel to Treasure Town!"

"And what is that?"

I waited a second for dramatic tension, then, I puffed out my chest as proudly and shouted as loud as I could.

"All explorers want to go on adventures!"

Blue clapped admiringly as I took a deep breath and concluded my lecture. I leapt off the stump and stood next to Blue.

"Maybe I'm saying too much," I admitted, feeling a little embarrassed at my outburst, "I'm not even a real explorer yet."

I pawed the dirt on the ground sheepishly as Blue stood back up. He walked over to me and grabbed the sides of my face with both his paws. Then, he started pulling.

"Ow, ow, ow!" I shouted as he stretched out my cheeks, "Waff are you doinff?!"

"If that's all you needed to be an explorer," He said, letting go of my face. I rubbed my cheeks gingerly as he continued, "Then you're already an explorer, don't you think?"

"What do you mean?" I said, confused.

"You said all explorers want to go on adventures, right?" I nodded at his statement. Then, he puffed out his chest and crossed his arms, "Then you're an explorer. You went on an adventure with me yesterday, remember?"

He had a point. The thought of that never even crossed my mind until now. I really did go on an adventure yesterday. I explored the dark, scary cave on the beach with Blue. Still, I shook my head and gave him a small smile.

"It's not that easy, Blue," I said as he raised his eyebrow in confusion, "There's a lot of rules about how to become an actual explorer, you see. It's not as easy as just going into a cave."

"Ugh," Blue made a disparaging noise in his throat at my statement. I giggled and began to walk down the path to town again as I began to explain.

"You see, not anyone can just be an explorer," I reasoned, "There's this big group of Pokémon that decide whether or not you're eligible to become an explorer."

"That sounds complicated," Blue grumbled, annoyed.

I giggled and continued my explanation, "There's a reason why it's complicated."

"You see, back then, anyone could become an explorer. But that caused a lot of problems as some mean and unfair Pokémon used to go and pretend to join other explorers on expeditions." I frowned unhappily at that, "These bullies would then attack their own teammates and steal their belongings before running away."

"The thought of Pokémon that do that makes me pretty disgusted, to be honest with you," I commented. Blue nodded with me in agreement, also frowning angrily, before letting me continue, "So a group of famous exploration team leaders came together one day in Treasure Town and decided that they had to do something about this problem."

"So what did they come up with?" Blue asked as he kicked a pebble off the road, "The way I see it, the problem they had sounded pretty awful."

"Oh, it was pretty awful," I said sadly as I watched the pebble bounce off the dirt and into the forest, "There were reports of attacks and thievery almost every day. No one knew who to trust and who to partner with for a long time."

"But!" I smiled and turned to face Blue, "The team leaders did come up with a great plan. They decided that any Pokémon that wanted to be an explorer must first apply to one of their exploration teams."

"Hold on," Blue interrupted, "Wouldn't that basically be like painting a target on themselves?"

I shook my head and grinned, "You'd think so, but it wasn't like that."

"Any aspiring explorer had to first become an apprentice in one of their teams before they were allowed to go on any expeditions," I explained. "And with that, it became much harder for the thieves and bullies to cheat and steal from the honest explorers."

"Why is that?" Blue asked, scratching his chin.

"Well, you see, now when an apprentice wants to go out and explore, they had to be supervised by an experienced explorer associated with their team," I said cheerfully, "It made it pretty hard for the thieves to steal when they were under the watchful eye of a super strong and super savvy explorer, you know."

Blue chuckled at that, "I see now, that does make things a little safer." He paused for a second, and then asked a question, "Hm, but wouldn't that make it a bit difficult for new explorers to just jump into the thick of things and start exploring?"

"Well, it's true that new explorers now have to go through an apprenticeship before they can do everything they want." I admitted, "A lot of other Pokémon weren't happy about their decision either."

As we walked, I noticed a small stream ahead of us. I was feeling a little parched from talking so much, so I pointed it out to Blue and gestured that I wanted to have a drink. He nodded and we stopped at the river.

"But, it did get results, you know." I continued after I quenched my thirst, "A lot of problematic Pokémon got caught before they got to do anything, and a lot of new explorers learned a lot from their experienced teachers. So it was a win – win situation in the end."

"Well, I guess I can't complain if it works," Blue said as he bent down and splashed the water on his face while I rested my tired feet in the cool stream.

"And that's why I want to join Wigglytuff's Guild," I said, puffing out my chest pridefully, "They're the best of the best, and I want to learn how to be a great explorer from them."

"Heh," Blue chuckled as he played with the water, "You did say something about them earlier during your history lesson."

He squirted some icy water into my face playfully, "I'm surprised you haven't already applied to be an apprentice there."

"Yeah..." I said, sending a splash of water back at him, "It's not that I haven't already tried."

"What do you mean?" Blue wiped the water off his face and gave me a puzzled glance.

I shook my head and admitted, "I've actually tried to join them for...well, months now, I suppose." I scooped out a tiny leaf that was floating in the stream and stared at it, "Every day, I walk up to their gates and try to work up the courage to apply, but I always run away in the end."

Blue let out a low whistle. Smiling wryly to myself, I let go of the leaf and watched it get carried away by the wind.

"But, you know," I glanced over at Blue, "I think today's the day."

I looked up into the sky past the leafy canopy and grinned, "I'm not the same, cowardly Fée as before. Today, I'm going to go to the gates, walk right in, and ask them to accept me as an apprentice!"


	6. What is all of this?

**•   
Chapter 6:**

**"What is all of this?"**

"Ah!" Fée suddenly stopped in her tracks. Turning around, she looked at Blue with excitement sparkling in her eyes, "Look! I see the exit ahead!"

"Really?" Blue replied casually, "I just see more trees ahead, are you sure?"

"Positive!" Fée replied. She faced the other way and began to run ahead, leaving Blue behind as she kicked up clouds of dust in her wake.

"Hold on Fée!" Blue shouted back, coughing a little from the dust, "What's the rush?"

Blue shook the dust off his face and rubbed his eyes. However, by the time he managed to recover from her sudden sand attack, all he could see was Fée's little brown tail wagging happily in the distance.

Shaking his head and smirking bemusedly to himself, Blue decided that trying to catch up was pointless now, and decided to plod along at his own pace. He grimaced slightly as he felt a dull pain shoot up his left leg as he walked. Blue glanced down at his leg. The red scars from yesterday still glowered angrily at him. Subconsciously, he rubbed his arms, feeling the welts that Zubat gave him. A sudden image of Fée's worried expression flashed inside his mind.

"I can't let her be worried about something like this," He whispered to himself, sighing, "Just gotta grin and bear with it for now."

He slapped the sides of his face to shake off any lingering doubt and continued his leisurely pace after his friend.

* * *

My entire body was quivering with excitement as I ran through the woods at full speed. I couldn't put a finger on why I was feeling so exhilarated. Maybe I was just really looking forward to showing Blue around my beloved town. My thoughts were filled with ideas and plans about what I should take him to see, about what I can tell him, and other silly stuff like that.

Maybe I could take him to Miltank's Milk Parlor and get some nice frothy jugs of cream, that sounded pretty good. Or maybe we could go visit Mr. Mime's library, oh, but does he like to read? I don't know... Oh, how about visiting the bazaar? There's usually something interesting on display there, maybe he'll like that!

Just thinking about those plans made me run even faster. I looked around and saw that the trees around me were thinning out, meaning that I was nearing the exit of the forest. Once we're out of the trees, we'll reach the main road that leads to the entrance of Treasure Town. Feeling eager, I quickly glanced backwards to see if Blue was following along. For a split second, I thought I saw him in the distance, running far behind me.

But then, my vision was suddenly covered in stars.

"Ouch!" I was suddenly sent flying backwards as I hit something hard in front of me. I gave a small yelp out of shock as I hit the ground hard. Dizzy from the fall, I sat up and rubbed my head gingerly.

"Hey! What's the big deal?" An angry shout from in front of me quickly snapped me out of my daze. Scared, I slowly looked up to see who was yelling at me.

A large, scary looking dragon loomed over me. Its entire body was covered with rough, blue – colored scales. Furthermore, the dragon had two sharp, menacing claws at the ends of his arms. Both of which were pointed at my face.

"I – I'm sorry," Terrified, I quickly apologized, trying my best not to burst into tears. It's often said that dragon Pokémon had the shortest tempers of all kinds of Pokémon out there, and I didn't want to be the one to confirm that belief, "I – I didn't mean to run into you! I wasn't looking at where I was going while I was running!"

"You better be sorry," he growled threateningly, "If you were planning on cutting in front of me, then you better prepare for trouble."

Terrified, I shook my head wildly. The dragon didn't look like he believed me though, and kept pointing his talons at me. I wanted to turn tail and run away, frightened by the scary Pokémon in front of me. But, right as I was about to scream and escape, a sharp, female voice suddenly rang out between us.

"Gabite! You cut that out, _now_!"

Surprised, both me and the dragon – Gabite – looked down at the source of the voice. Standing between us was a small, orange – shelled Pokémon. She had a large, oval shaped head and two beady eyes. Both of which were now glaring angrily at Gabite. As I looked up at the dragon, I was shocked to find that his expression had completely changed.

The little Pokémon opened her mouth, revealing a set of jagged teeth inside as she spoke to the dragon, "What do you think you're doing? Are you planning on ruining an entire month's worth of preparation before we even entered the town?"

"T – Trapinch..." Gabite looked almost frightened at the little Pokémon that was barely a quarter of his size, "I – I just thought she was trying to cut in front of us, like those Mankey from befo – ack!"

He was suddenly interrupted by a forceful glare from Trapinch. I watched, amazed, as Gabite physically recoiled and withered under Trapinch's gaze. After deciding that the dragon was suitably cowed, Trapinch turned around and addressed me.

"You ran into this big lug by accident, right?" She said in a kindly voice. I quickly nodded, wanting to clear up the misunderstanding as fast as possible. Trapinch gave me a toothy smile before turning around and glaring at Gabite again.

"Then it's not a big problem_, is it Gabite?_" Trapinch commanded, "She even apologized when she hit you, _didn't she?_"

Gabite, now thoroughly defeated, could only nod silently at the tiny Pokémon. Satisfied, Trapinch turned off her deadly gaze and faced me again.

"I'm so sorry about how rude my partner was," she apologized, bowing, "He's sorry too, _right?_"

"Mmrgh..." The large dragon grumbled and bowed his head for only a fraction of an inch. Another glare from Trapinch however, quickly made him bow down low enough that his snout touched the dirt.

"N – no, it's nothing," I stammered, a little embarrassed by the scene, "It was my fault, after all. I'm sorry for running into you, Gabite."

Trapinch raised her head and gave me another toothy smile, "You're a nice Pokémon, Eevee," She said, "Almost everyone else we've met just gets really mad at Gabite for being such a rude jerk, _right?_"

Gabite flinched as he rose from the ground. He crossed his arms and turned away from us in a huff. Trapinch sighed and shook her head before addressing me again.

"Don't worry about him," she said apologetically, "He's just really anxious about today, that's all."

"Today?" I asked, a little curious, "Is there something going on today?"

Trapinch gave me a surprised look, "You mean you're here, and you don't even know what's going on?"

I responded by giving her a puzzled look. Trapinch and Gabite both shared a confused glance at each other before addressing me again.

"Eevee," Trapinch waved her stubby little arms around, trying to gesture something, "Maybe you should take a good look around you first."

I followed the direction her little arms were pointing, and was immediately taken aback by what I saw.

It was a crowd – no, actually it was more than a crowd, much more. An unbelievably massive horde of Pokémon was gathered here on the field. I gaped in astonishment as the crowd of Pokémon stretched from the entrance of Treasure Town all the way to the horizon.

Standing at the forefront of the group were herds of Tauros and Boufallant. The strong, bull – like Pokémon were lugging large wooden caravans on wheels, while a group of Mankey and Primape energetically jogged along the caravans, carrying huge piles of wood and lumber with their strong arms. Furthermore, flocks of strong flying Pokémon also carried what looked like building materials overhead.

But what was behind the caravans was what really stunned me. Multitudes of different Pokémon lined up together as they slowly marched toward Treasure Town. I watched in amusement as a group of Surskit skated ahead of their Turtwig companion, who was struggling to keep up with the speedy little bugs. Then, I saw a pair consisting of a Numel and a Poliwhirl riding on top of a massive Onix as the three of them laughed at the many, many more Pokémon glaring at them from below.

There were so many different Pokémon congregated here that I felt my jaw drop. I've never seen this many Pokémon in one place before, let alone this many different types and species! I quickly turned to Trapinch, who was smiling at my astonishment.

"What is all of this?" I said in a hurried voice, watching several Pidgey fly overhead, "Why are there so many Pokémon here?"

"You really don't know?" Trapinch said, her voice filled with genuine surprise, "Well, where do I start?"

"How about you start walking before the group leaves us behind?" Gabite snapped in irritation as he watched several Aipom sprint past him. One cheeky Aipom stopped to stick out his tongue at Gabite, who growled back in response.

"Don't be rude, Gabite." Trapinch snapped back, "The least we can do is catch this Eevee up to speed."

Gabite opened his mouth to protest, but a quick look at the expression on Trapinch's face made him reconsider. Trapinch sighed and turned back to me.

"So!" She said, cheerfully, "Now that the _big baby's_ done crying, let me see how well I can explain this..."

"You're aware of that big storm yesterday, right?" Trapinch asked. I nodded, thinking back to when I had to run through Treasure Town during the worst of the storm yesterday.

"Well, apparently when the storm hit, it wrecked a lot of Treasure Town in the process," She pointed at the town's gate, which, upon further inspection, looked like it had a huge chunk torn out its side, "So a lot of Pokémon from neighboring towns are coming to help with rebuilding."

She gestured toward the front of the line, where all the caravans stood, "Since Treasure Town's such an important place, pretty much every settlement, village and city pitched in to help."

"I see..." I knew Treasure Town was a popular town amongst explorers, but I never really thought about how important it was to other cities and villages. Treasure Town was located in the center of a great frontier, right next to locales that held plenty of resources and valuables. I guess keeping good relations with Treasure Town was important to other villages and towns because of trade and other economic stuff...

"But that doesn't explain why there's so many Pokémon moving here though," I said, staring at the densely packed crowd behind Trapinch, "Unless they're all to here to help rebuild...?"

Trapinch gave a little dry chuckle, "No, if I think if they all came to help rebuild, Treasure Town would be destroyed in a fortnight!"

"No, Eevee, you see..." Trapinch stood on her hind legs and made a dramatic sweeping gesture, "Each and every Pokémon here are explorers!"

"What?!" I shouted in surprise.

"It's true," Trapinch said with an air of pride, "Me and Gabite here are also explorers. Team Sands, we've called ourselves."

"...I wanted to call us Team Claws..." Gabite mumbled when he heard that. Trapinch just gave him a bemused look and ignored him.

"You two are full fledged explorers already?" I said incredulously, glancing over at Gabite and back. Trapinch shook her head and gave me a sheepish grin.

"Well, no," She said while Gabite shrugged behind her, "We call ourselves Team Sands, but we're not actually explorers yet."

Trapinch pointed over to the entrance gate of Treasure Town, "That's why we're here. We want to become apprentices to a guild and learn how to become real explorers, and I'm willing to bet that that's why everyone else is here too."

"But...why are there so many Pokémon here?" I wondered. It's true that Treasure Town gets immigrants a lot, mostly newbie explorers who want to become apprentices, but it's never gotten this many Pokémon coming in at once before.

"Well, it relates to that storm yesterday again," Trapinch explained, "After the storm blew over, apparently it revealed a lot of new and hidden places to explore around Treasure Town."

"What?!" This was all news to me. How could all of this have happened while I was gone yesterday?

"Mmhm." Trapinch nodded, "Cliffs collapsed, caves exposed, forests parted, fogs defogged... stuff like that"

"Wow..." I was stunned. I never imagined that the storm would be able to bring so many new faces into town.

"Once news of all those new and unknown places broke out, everyone wanted to move to Treasure Town immediately," Trapinch said, "We both got super excited when we heard the news too, didn't we Gabite?"

"I didn't get that excited..." Gabite mumbled, shaking his head. Trapinch laughed and whispered to me.

"He's lying," She said, winking at me, "When he heard about the news, he woke me up in the middle of the night and demanded that we prepare to leave as soon as possible."

We both glanced over at Gabite, why was trying his best to look tough and uncaring, but the effect was ruined by the small blush on his face. Trapinch and I shared a knowing giggle, making Gabite blush even harder.

"So everyone here's looking to become apprentices?" I confirmed, looking around at all the Pokémon around us.

"That's what I'm assuming," Trapinch said, nodding, "There's a few experienced – looking faces strewn around here and there, but I'm willing to bet most of them are like Gabite and I: total novices looking to join a guild."

Trapinch grinned and leaned against Gabite's leg, who frowned and mumbled something about not being a novice. Trapinch responded by lightly nipping his ankle, making him yelp in surprise.

"So anyway, that's our story," Trapinch said in a muffled voice, "What about you, Eevee?"

"Oh, um..." Now that I think about it, where was Blue? It's been a while now, and I haven't seen him at all. Worried, I turned around and searched for the forest path behind me, only to discover that the path behind me had suddenly been taken over by a horde of Ponyta and Blitzle.

"Wha?" I gaped in disbelief. Where was the road? When did I get surrounded by all these Pokémon? Where was Blue?!

"It looks like line's moving again, Trapinch," Gabite growled, plucking Trapinch off his ankle and depositing her on his shoulder, "We'd best get moving now or else we'll be left behind."

"Hrm...you're right," Trapinch said, staring out over the crowd from her new vantage point, "I'm sorry Eevee. I'd love to keep chatting with you, but this oaf's got a point. If we don't get moving, it'll probably take all day to get in town at this rate."

"Oh, it's not a problem," I replied quickly, glancing over to the crowd of Pontya again, "Thanks for telling me about everything, Trapinch."

"Well, hm..." Trapinch pondered for a second, making Gabite grumble impatiently, "I have an idea! Why don't you come with us, Eevee?"

"Huh?" I said, confused. Trapinch pointed to the entrance of Treasure Town, which was nearly invisible due to all the Pokémon crowding around it.

"Like I said, it's gonna take all day to get into town if you take too long, and you're definitely going to take longer if you start from the back of the line," Trapinch reasoned, "So why don't you come with us for now? You can be an temporary member of Team Sands!"

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" Gabite interrupted, glaring at her, "Who said you could just invite her into our team like that?"

"I said it was just temporary, Gabite," Trapinch retorted, glaring back at him, "_And don't you take that tone with me._ It's because of your short temper we're waiting here like this anyway."

Gabite opened his mouth to protest, but a quick look at Trapinch's face made him reconsider and grumble angrily to himself instead. Trapinch smiled victoriously and turned back to me.

"So what do you say?" She offered, holding out a stubby arm, "If you come with us, you'll get in quicker."

"Um..." I replied, a little taken aback by her offer. It was a generous offer, and she had a good reason for me to accept, but...

"I'm sorry, but I'll have to decline," I said, bowing my head down. Trapinch looked a little saddened at that, Gabite just sighed and shook his head. I quickly added, "It's not because of you two. It's because I've lost a friend around in the crowd somewhere, and I want to find him."

"Oh well," Trapinch said, sighing in disappointment, "I guess it's just gonna be me and Gabite then."

"I'm really sorry."

"Nah, it's not a big deal," Trapinch said reassuringly at me while waving a little arm, "I hope you find your friend, Eevee."

"Oh, my name isn't just Eevee," I quickly said, "It's Fée. That's my name."

Trapinch smiled at me, "It's a good name, Fée. I like it." She pointed at Gabite and then to herself, "His name's Lazur, and my name's Feldie."

"Trapinch..." Lazur growled menacingly at her. Feldie responded by nibbling his head, making him wince in pain.

"That makes us friends now, Fée," Feldie said, her mouth full of dragon scales, "I hope we meet again someday!"

"I hope so too! Goodbye, Feldie, Lazur!" I shouted at them as they walked away with the crowd. Then, I turned around and looked around nervously. I didn't know where Blue was, and now I'm severely regretting running off and leaving him alone in the forest earlier.

Taking a deep breath, I tried to look through the horde of Pokémon around me, desperately trying to catch a glimpse of his blue fur through the massive crowd. It simply wasn't possible. Between the amount of different Pokémon around, and all the dust being kicked up by said amount of Pokémon walking, I just couldn't see a thing.

"Blue..." I mumbled worriedly, "Where are you?"

* * *

"Where am I?"

Blue was lost. After walking through the forest for what felt like ages, he finally came out into a large field. Unfortunately though, it seemed like every single acre on the field was covered by Pokémon, making it incredibly difficult to figure out where he was and where he should be going.

Blue grumbled and crossed his arms in frustration. He watched as a crowd made up of Meditite and Bronzor slowly floated by, followed by several eel – like Tynamo and Eeletrik. Every once in a while, he spotted something brown waltz by, but every time it just ended up being something other than an Eevee. He sighed as a pale Vulpix walked by him, eying him curiously.

He figured that something big was definitely happening right now, and that everything was congregating at one place. Blue glanced over at the massive mesa in the distance. At the top of the great plateau, he could just barely make out the outline of what looked like buildings. Added on to the fact that he spotted a few Mankey carrying lumber and building materials, he deduced that at the top of the mesa must be where Treasure Town was.

Sighing, Blue shrugged at his own thoughts. Even if he had turned on all his deductive instincts, it still doesn't really help his current situation. He thought about cutting into the long line of Pokémon that stretched out before him, but a quick glance at some of the Pokémon, particularly the ones that were twice his size, made him reconsider that idea.

"Hey," he pulled aside a Geodude that was bouncing down the road, "Can I ask you a question?"

"Hands off, bud!" The talking rock snarled, pulling his arm out of Blue's grasp, "If you've got time to beg 'fer questions, then you'd be better off just waiting in line!"

With that said, he bounced back into the fold and vanished into the crowd. Blue sighed and shrugged.

Glancing over to the town again, he mused to himself about the possibility of climbing the cliff face to get into the town without waiting in line. He assumed that Fée must've already be in there, being that she was already a resident beforehand. But as he was entertaining the notion of climbing the sheer rock wall, a loud clattering noise behind him jarred him out of his thoughts.

"Make way! Make way!" A Tauros came stampeding down the road, dragging a rickety caravan behind him, "Heavy load coming through here! If you don't wanna be stomped on, get out of the way!"

Blue glanced over at the Tauros, then at the caravan it was dragging wildly behind it. It was covered with a thick, white cloth, making whatever was inside completely invisible to the casual observer. Then, he watched as the Pokémon in front of the Tauros quickly jumped aside as it charged down the road.

As he watched the Tauros charged ever closer to him, a nasty plot hatched inside Blue's mind...

* * *

After parting with Feldie and Lazur, I quickly moved away from the great horde of Pokémon and sneaked into the surrounding forestry around the town. Once I made sure no one was around, I dived into the copse again. I snaked through the trees, keeping an eye out for stray Pokémon who might've wandered in by accident. After a while, I reached the cliff below Treasure Town.

Looking up, I couldn't see the town through the canopy of leaves, but I could still faintly hear the sounds of Pokémon far, far above me.

"Hm...I haven't used this in a while..." I mumbled, scanning around the bottom of the cliff for what I was looking for, "I hope it's still here."

Then, out of the corner of my eye, I found it. A little inconspicuous bush lying against the rock wall. I ran over and inspected it. It looked undisturbed and intact. Sighing in relief, I gently pushed the bush aside with my paws and revealed a little hole in the corner where the wall and ground met.

"It's still here, thank goodness..."

It was a secret tunnel, obviously. I grinned to myself as I squeezed myself into the small hole. It's been so long since I've had to use this secret passage, that it felt almost nostalgic in a way.

I don't know who built this tunnel, or why, but it's been here for as long as I've lived in Treasure Town. Smiling mischievously, I thought back to all the times I sneaked in and out of town using this secret passage. It was like a little secret that only I knew.

I wasn't as small as I used to be anymore. Going through the passage wasn't as easy as it used to be, but thankfully, I wasn't large enough that it would've gotten me stuck. I thought about my size for a second, and sighed. Personally, I would've liked to grow a bit bigger, but my body stubbornly refused to grow no matter how much I tried.

Sighing again, I pushed that thought out of my mind and continued to crawl through the tunnel. Slowly, the path began to curve upward. I slowed down my ascent, cautious of slipping and then accidentally sliding all the way down to the bottom. Soon, after a few minutes of crawling around in the darkness, I began to hear the sounds of activity above me.

Eager to get out of the tunnel and back to the sunlight, I began to crawl faster. The sounds of Pokémon talking and walking got louder and louder as I neared the surface.

"Aha!" I cheered when I saw the exit. A tiny sliver of light was shining down from the ceiling of the tunnel. I scampered over to the light and flipped over on to my back. Then, I poked my head through the hole the light was coming from.

Leaves scattered all around me as I emerged from the tunnel. Looking around at all the bushes and flowers around me, I quickly recognized the place. It was the small, grassy garden that was in the shopping plaza! As I glanced through the bushes that surrounded me, I saw Pokémon walk around, chatting happily and checking out the stores.

"I'm in!" I whispered cheerfully as I pulled myself out of the hole. I replaced the pile of leaves that was covering the entrance to the tunnel and smiled to myself. It was a little strange to be cheerful about this, but I was back home!

I adjusted my bag around my neck and dusted any remaining dirt off my fur. Then, as quietly and inconspicuously as possible, I sneaked out of the garden and blended into the crowd of Pokémon.

"Come one, come all! We've got a big sale for y'all today here at Kecleon and Kecleon's wares! Berries! Orbs! TMs! You name it, we've got it!"

"Feeling parched from your long journey? Want to rest your legs after waiting in line? Come and take a seat here at Miltank's Milk Parlor! We have the best food around for miles, and probably the only place you can get food for miles!"

"Need a place to stay? Haven't quite decided on which guild to join yet? Don't fret! You can stay for as long as you want here at Kangaskhan's!"

I looked around in amazement as I heard store owners and shopkeepers shout out advertisements at the Pokémon visiting the markets. I giggled when I saw the two Kecleon brothers try to peddle their wares at a group of confused Pokémon, and smiled when I saw Kangaskhan and her child warmly welcoming several tired – looking travelers into her house. It was amazing for me to see all these new faces around in a place I've lived all my life in.

"Hey, isn't that Fée?" I turned around when I heard my voice be called by someone behind me. Suddenly, something small and blue jumped into my face, "It is! Fée! Hello Fée!"

"Aah!" I fell backwards as the strange blue thing began to nuzzle itself against my cheek energetically.

"Azurill!" I said happily as I pulled my young friend off my face. It was a small, blue – colored Pokémon with a smile that almost seemed too big for her face. Azurill wrapped her springy black tail around my paw and bopped me playfully over the head with the ball – like tip of her tail.

"Fée!" Azurill said, giving me a great big grin, "How have you been? Wasn't the storm scary yesterday? Where were you? Were you at home? Did you get wet?"

An overwhelming torrent of questions came flooding out of the little Pokèmon. I untangled her tail from my paw and gently placed her on the ground. She continued to giddily pile on more and more questions as she sat on her bouncy tail.

"Do you know why there's so many Pokémon here today? It's almost like a festival!" Azurill said, leaping up and down like a spring, "I was so surprised when I woke up today and saw a Steelix rumble by my window! A Steelix!"

"I bet that was pretty surprising, huh?" I smiled at the little Pokémon. Her eyes were practically glittering with excitement as she nodded happily.

"Yeah! Marill almost fainted when he saw it go by, but I wasn't afraid!" She said pridefully, "Then when I told Marill that I wanted to ride the Steelix, he fainted! Hee hee!"

"Poor Marill," I thought about Azurill's brother. He was constantly worried about Azurill's well – being to the point that he always looked like he was on the verge of tears.

Well, I guess I can't really say anything about that, after how much I cried yesterday.

"Azurill, where's your brother right now?" I asked, curious as to why Azurill was out alone, "It's not safe to walk around outside when there's so many Pokémon wandering around."

"Oh, we got split up a while ago," Azurill said, sounding a little worried, "I saw this big, big balloon floating up in the air and I wanted to go get it. Marill said that it wasn't a balloon, but it was so big and round and floaty, so it had to be one! So I bounced up and grabbed on to it with my tail, like this!"

Azurill demonstrated by bouncing up into the air with her tail. Surprised at how high she went, I quickly dove underneath her as she fell, catching her before she hit the ground.

"Oof!" While she wasn't heavy, catching Azurill still made me collapse on to the ground. Coughing from the dust, I stood up while she was still riding on my back.

"And then, when I grabbed on to the balloon, it turned around and looked at me!" Azurill continued her tale, while still happily bouncing on my back, "It said 'hey kid, this ain't a free ride!' in a scary voice and tossed me away!"

"What?" I turned around and stared at her incredulously, "You were thrown away?"

"Yep!" She said in a strangely glee voice, "It was so fun, flying in the air like a Pidgey!"

"I really feel bad for Marill now..." I shook my head in astonishment at her blitheness. I imagined Marill standing in the middle of the plaza, watching in horror as his sister was sent flying away. "He definitely fainted."

"Hee hee!" Azurill giggled as I said that, "Poor Marill!"

"Poor Marill," I repeated, sighing, "I guess we'd better go find him and see if he's alright."

"Aw, can't we play together for a bit before that?" Azurill whined, wagging her tail around like a big squishy flail. I shook my head, no.

"Not now, Azurill," I said, trying to reason with her, "We'll find your brother, and then we can play later, okay?"

Azurill made a pouting face, but reluctantly nodded anyway. Sighing to myself, I made sure Azurill was comfortable on my back before setting off towards the main plaza.

I guess I now have to find two missing Pokémon. I looked up into the cloudless sky, wondering where in the world Blue could be.


	7. Treasure Town, here I come!

**•   
Chapter 7:**

**"Treasure Town, here I come!"**

Blue peeked outside from within the rumbling caravan. From behind the thick canvas, Blue watched as the Tauros pulling the vehicle slowly trundle up the slope that lead up and into Treasure Town. Several other Tauros and Boufallant were already present and waiting in front of the caravan he was currently stowing away in.

"What do you see out there, blue boy?" A coarse voice rang out from behind Blue, "Are we in yet?"

"Not yet," Blue replied, closing the flap. He turned around and sat down on a piece of lumber as three voices simultaneously sighed from around him.

Blue glanced around inside the dim caravan. He wasn't the only one who thought about sneaking into town by hiding inside one of the caravans, apparently. Three other hitchhikers were already present within the covered wagon when Blue sneakily leapt inside. One of the hitchhikers crossed his arms and shook his head ifrustratedly.

"What a load of Tauros dung," He spat angrily, "And here I thought we were being clever by hiding in here. But look at this, we're still stuck outside like the rest of the fools back there!"

He snorted and leaned back against a piece of lumber, his hands behind his head. Blue glanced over at him. The Pokémon was monkey – like. He had a long thin tail that extended out from behind him and was coiled around his waist like a belt. Even in the dim light, Blue could tell that the Pokémon was fairly fit, with thick muscles that were just barely hidden by his orange fur.

His other two companions didn't resemble him, but they all shared a similar body shape. One Pokémon was sitting opposite of Blue, on the other side of the caravan. The Pokémon was taller than the monkey, and was covered in a thick layer of yellow feathers. Its feet resembled those of a bird's, complete with talons. It clacked its beak accidentally as it yawned out of boredom.

Their last companion was shorter than the other two, but had a much stouter body than the both of them. It had a large, thick nose and two long black ears that stuck out of the top of its head. It had an orange body with swirling yellow patterns on its belly. Blue watched as it nervously played with its curly black tail, pulling it and letting it spring back over and over.

"Pignite, cut that out!" The monkey shouted furiously, making his pig – like companion flinch and let go of his tail in surprise. "You know how much that annoys me."

Pignite's tail recoiled like a spring and slapped Pignite on the face, making him wince in pain, "S – sorry Monferno... I can't help it, I'm just so nervous!"

"What do you have to be nervous about?" Monferno snarled, making Pignite flinch again, "Just sit there with your mouth shut, just like Combusken over there."

"I think she's asleep, boss," Pignite mumbled, looking over at his feathered companion. Monferno swung his tail at Pignite and whipped him across the cheek, making Pignite squeal in pain.

"Then you go to sleep as well, coal for brains!" He said, standing over his cowering partner with his tail in his hands, "If you keep whining like that, you'll get us all busted!"

"Eee..." Pignite covered his face with his thickset arms, trying to protect himself from another whipping. However, seeing his partner cower like that only made Monferno angrier. The tip of his orange tail was beginning to emit small, yellow sparks.

"I said, shut up!" He raised his tail and prepared to strike at the shivering Pignite again. Then, right as he was about to whip Pignite, a blue paw stopped his arm. Monferno turned his around and glared at Blue.

"Cut it out," Blue said sharply, holding tightly on to the furious monkey's arm. He couldn't just stand by and watch anymore, "You'll get us all caught if you keep this up."

"This isn't any of your business, Riolu!" Monferno snarled, yanking his arm out of Blue's grasp. The air around the tip of his tail began to waver as more sparks shot out of it. Pignite squealed in surprise as one of the sparks landed on a piece of wood around them and began to smolder. He quickly patted the spark out before it grew any larger.

Blue glared back at Monferno, jabbing a finger at his chest, "Then go ahead, set this caravan on fire. We'll see if we can get into town on a burning wreck without getting caught."

"You..." The monkey balled his hand up into a fist. Blue also readied to throw his own punch. The two of them glqared at each other for a few seconds before they leapt at each other, fists drawn and faces snarling. Then, right before their fists connected with each others faces, a sudden explosion of yellow feathers erupted between them, halting both of their movement in an instant.

"You're being too loud, boss," Their last companion, now awake, stood between her raging boss and Blue. Her wing – like hands were outstretched and pushing against both of their faces. She stuffed yellow feathers into Monferno and Blue's mouths, muffling both of their their voices, "I can't even get any sleep with the racket you two are making."

Blue and Monferno both spat out mouthfuls of feathers as they coughed. The chicken – like Pokémon crossed her arms and gave the both of them a bored look, "Boss, don't forget the reason we're here. If you get us kicked out because of your temper, how're you going to face the boys back at home?"

"Rghh... Combusken..." Monferno plucked a feather off his face and shot his companion a dirty look. Combusken ignored him, closed his eyes and sat back down. Within seconds, she was clacking her beak again, soundly asleep.

"B – boss..." Pignite timidly said, tapping his two hands together nervously, "She's got a point... There's nothing to be gained by being kicked out now..."

Pignite squeaked and shut up as Monferno turned to glare at him, then he turned back to glare at Blue, who shook his head and shrugged. Feeling defeated by opposition on all sides, Monferno's tail stopped sparkling as he cooled down. Wordlessly, but still evidently displeased, the orange monkey sat back down and rested his cheek on his fist.

Sighing, Blue sat down as well. It was difficult enough to sneak into the caravan without being seen, but that he had to share it with a powder keg of a team made it even harder. He mused to himself about the possibility of changing to a different caravan, but one peek outside made him reconsider the idea.

"Looks like we're moving now," Blue announced as he watched the scenery outside, "I can see the entrance to town from here."

"Fan – freaking – tastic," Monferno replied sarcastically, "Maybe I'll go get myself something to eat once we're in."

"I'd like to eat something too," Pignite said in a hopeful voice, his stomach grumbling loudly, "I've been feeling mighty hungry for a while now."

"Who said you were going to eat?" Monferno growled, "You're going to go and find out where Machoke's Guild is and get us applied as apprentices. _Then_ you can start thinking about food."

"B – but..." Pignite sounded heartbroken when he heard Monferno's response. He looked like he was going to argue back, but he immediately clammed up when he saw Monferno's expression. Pignite sighed and hung his head in defeat.

"Machoke's Guild?" Blue queried as he closed the canvas flap again, "What's that?"

"Pfft, what rock did you come crawling out from?" Monferno snorted rudely, "Oh wait, you're a Riolu, so I guess you were probably living with rocks all your life!"

He cackled at his own tasteless joke. Pignite hesitantly laughed along with him, shooting Blue an apologetic look as he did so.

"I don't understand," Blue said truthfully, "What do you mean by living with rocks?"

"Oh, you're cracking me up! Ka, ha, ha!" Monferno cackled even harder at Blue's response, "You're such an idiot!"

Blue frowned. While he didn't particularly care about the Monferno's insults, he still felt incredibly annoyed that the cackling monkey knew something he didn't. He glanced over at Pignite, who looked unsure whether or not he should laugh along or to stay silent. When Pignite caught his eye, he quickly shook his head.

"I don't know anything...!" He whispered at Blue.

"Of course you don't! You're both idiots! Ka, ha, ha!" Monferno continued his maniacal cackling, completely misunderstanding Pignite's words.

Blue sighed out of frustration. He wanted to slug that monkey right in the laughing face. But Blue knew that if he knocked Monferno right out of the caravan, they'd all get caught immediately. Grumbling, he decided to just sit and endure it. It wasn't long until the caravan entered the town, all he had to do is keep his anger in check until then.

Monferno continued to cackle loudly as Blue and Pignite both shared a defeated sigh.

After what felt like an eternity, the uncomfortable caravan ride finally ended as the Tauros rolled past the large wooden gate that served as the entrance to Treasure Town.

Blue, Monferno, Pignite and Combusken all quietly peeked out from behind the canvas, trying to gauge the situation before doing anything. The caravan had finally entered the town, but one false move and they could be caught and thrown out immediately. Blue watched closely at the scenery around them for an opportunity to escape.

They appeared to be in a large, circular plaza. Blue watched in amazement as Pokémon of all shapes and sizes wandered around the plaza, filling the air with happy chatter and merriment. Aquatic Pokémon were splashing around in a large stone fountain featured in the center of the plaza, swimming and splashing happily as the fountain spilled refreshing water into the basin.

Surrounding the plaza was a bunch of small, squat buildings. Each and every one of the buildings looked like they had seen better days. Chunks were torn out of the walls, leaving ugly, gaping holes at the sides. Glass windows were shattered, and some of the doors had their hinges blown off. Shop signs were knocked askew, some even had letters missing from the sign. One unfortunate house even had its entire roof blown off.

But all the damage wasn't enough to stop the townspeople from continuing their businesses. Small, wooden stands displaying goods of all kinds were strewn haphazardly around the plaza, temporarily replacing the shopfronts. Storekeepers shouted loudly over the crowds, trying to entice Pokémon to come over and hopefully purchase something. Delectable smells were wafting into the caravan from some of the stands, making the stowaway group drool with yearning.

"Ohhh... that smells so good..." Pignite whined, his belly grumbling like an avalanche, "I wanna go eat so bad right now..."

"Just hang in there," Blue replied, his own stomach growling up a storm, "If we leave now, we'll definitely be seen."

"Ergh..." Pignite squealed sadly, trying to console his aching belly as much as he could. Monferno slapped Pignite over the back of his head, making him squeal again in surprise.

"You're not gonna get anything to eat at all if you keep whining," He snapped, "You have your job, and you're gonna finish that job before you can even think about pigging out, got it?"

"B – boss... that's too cruel..." Pignite sobbed, now trying to console his aching head. Blue sighed and shook his head. He made a mental note to grab something to eat for Pignite as well later.

"Hey, looks like we're leaving the plaza now," Combusken pointed out, pulling the other three's attention back outside, "Hopefully to somewhere a bit quieter."

"No one cares, Combusken," Monferno retorted, "They're probably moving the caravan over to someplace where they can unload the cargo inside here. So we gotta get moving before that happens."

Despite their grievances with the monkey, everyone nodded at his assessment of the situation.

"Once we're out of the plaza, there's probably going to be less bystanders roaming around," Monferno planned, "Once we're in a quiet spot, we'll leap out the back and split up. This way, if one of us gets caught, the rest of us will be able to get away."

"That's a great plan, boss!" Pignite praised, clapping his hands together in admiration. Monferno snorted and rubbed his nose with his finger, evidently pleased with Pignite's reaction.

Blue quickly peeked out through the canvas more time. The amount of Pokémon surrounding the caravan had decreased dramatically as the caravan entered a side road and out of the plaza. He turned his head back at the group and gave a quick nod.

"Alright," Monferno snapped his fingers and pointed out the caravan, "On the count of three, we jump out and scatter, got it?"

The four nodded and huddled around the exit to the caravan. Monferno began to slowly count to three.

"One..."

Pignite gulped as his stomach growled angrily.

"Two..."

Combusken's beak made another clacking noise as she released a loud yawn.

"Three..."

A bead of sweat slid down the side of Blue's face as he waited for the signal.

"Go!"

Pandemonium ensued as the four of them all simultaneously leapt out of the caravan. A Boufallant that was walking behind their caravan reared up on its hind legs, bellowing a loud cry of surprise.

"What are you idiots waiting for?" Monferno shouted as they landed on the ground, "Hurry up and run!"

Blue didn't even wait for Monferno to finish his command. He nimbly leapt on to the Boufallant's massive afro before it realized what was going on. Then, wasting no time, he jumped off the bull Pokémon's head and on to the top of the caravan it was carrying.

An entire row of white canvassed wagons stretched out ahead of Blue. To him though, it wasn't just a bunch of caravans. It was a road.

"See you guys later!" Blue shouted back at the group, "Don't get caught!"

The other three had already skedaddled out of the place, sparing no time to say goodbye. Blue grinned and began to run. There was no time to waste, he had to get out of here and find Fée.

"Alright then," He shouted as he leapt across the caravans, "Treasure Town, here I come!"

* * *

"Fée! Fée! Look! It's a big, big boulder!"

I quickly turned around to see what Azurill was talking about. It was a massive Boldore stomping down the road, accompanied by a bunch of quivering Roggenrola around it. Azurill kept bouncing up and down on my back, giggling madly at the Boldore. When the huge mass of rock turned around to look at us, I quickly shushed Azurill and ran away.

"Aw!" I heard Azurill whine, "I wanted to ride on the big rock! Fée, let's go back!"

"That wasn't a rock, Azurill!" I retorted, trying to put as much distance between us and the Boldore as possible, "You shouldn't point out other Pokémon like that, it's rude."

"But I've never seen that kind of Pokémon before!" Azurill said. She kept tugging on my back, trying to make me turn around. I stubbornly continued to run, ignoring her pleas.

"Neither have I, Azurill. But it doesn't mean we can just stand and gape at them like that. Now stop pulling on my ruff and try to look for your brother."

"Pooh!" Azurill pouted as she stuffed her face into the back of my ruff. I sighed and mentally pitied poor Marill. It must be difficult to try and take care of such a rowdy little sister every day.

After a few minutes of frantic running, I stopped at the edge of the Founder's Fountain in the Main Plaza. Taking a break, I let Azurill off my back and into the water, where she started to splash around happily with her tail bobbing up and down in the water. I sat down to catch my breath while also looking around the plaza for any sign of Blue or Marill.

The plaza was so jam packed with Pokémon and caravans that it was practically impossible to tell if any of them were even here. No matter where I looked, I could only find unfamiliar Pokémon wandering around. There were Mankey and Primape repairing the buildings around the plaza that were wrecked during the storm. Pidgey, Taillow and other flying Pokémon were zipping around in the air, chirping with each other about this or that.

I sighed. There was no way I'd be able to find any of them at this rate. There was just too many Pokémon running around town. I leaned my head back against the fountain, letting the mist from the water cool me off.

"...stop nagging at me..!"

My ear twitched. For some reason, someone's voice seemed to stand out amongst the crowd. I pulled myself up and quickly looked around. Maybe it was someone I knew? Was it Blue? Marill?

"...agh, you're so annoying...!"

Frowning, I strained my hearing a bit more to try and find out where it was coming from.

"...I said..."

I closed my eyes and focused...

"_YOU'RE SO ANNOYING!_"

I screamed in pain as the Pokémon's loud shout nearly exploded my eardrums.

Suddenly, a massive shockwave came billowing from somewhere in the plaza, sending Pokémon all over the place flying into the air. The water from the fountain sprayed all over the plaza, drenching me and pretty much everyone else.

"Fée! Help!" Still wincing in pain from the noise, I quickly looked up and saw Azurill flying up in the air.

"Hold on!" I shouted as I rushed after her. I dived right before she hit the ground, turning around in midair as I did. She landed on my chest with a heavy thump, sending the both of us crashing into the cobblestone road. Panting on the ground, I held on to Azurill as tightly as possible, hoping that she wasn't injured in the fall.

"Fée, are you alright?" I looked down at Azurill's worried face. I quickly scrounged up a smile at her.

"I'm okay," I said reassuringly, "More importantly, are you hurt?"

"No, I'm okay," She said, making me sigh in relief, "Thank you Fée!"

She nuzzled herself into my ruff again, making me blush in embarrassment. I gently pulled the little Pokémon off my chest and put her back on my back.

Looking around in the aftermath of that strange shockwave, it appeared as though we weren't the only ones surprised by the explosion. The Pokémon that were wandering around the plaza or splashing in the fountain were all sitting on the ground, dazed and confused. The Mankey and Primeape on the buildings were raging around, screaming and hollering in anger at whoever it was that made the noise. All the flying Pokémon in the sky landed on the fountain statue or on the buildings, watching the scene curiously.

As for me and Azurill, we were also curious about what happened. I looked around, trying to find the culprit.

"Oh my gosh! Ooooh, look at what you did!"

"Oh... hehe, sorry."

It didn't take long to find out who it was. On the other side of the fountain were two Pokémon standing together. I climbed up on the side of the stone fountain to get a better look while Azurill bounced on top of my head.

"Loudred, you're going to get such a scolding from Chatot, eek!" It was an odd pair of Pokémon. One of them looked like a walking sunflower, and her partner had a gigantic mouth that pretty much took up his entire body.

"I said I was _SORRY_, didn't I?" When her partner said the word 'sorry,' another shockwave came billowing out of his mouth. I quickly snatched Azurill off my head and ducked below the fountain as the blast of sound came rushing by. I heard the flying Pokémon above us squawk and scatter when the sound wave struck.

"Oooh! Loudred!" I heard the flowery Pokémon shout, "You did it again!"

"Oh...hehe, sorry."

"Don't just repeat what you said!"

Hesitantly, I peeked out from behind the fountain again. The Pokémon that resembled a flower was smacking the other one over and over with her leaf – like hands. Her partner had his gargantuan mouth wide open and was laughing uproariously. Unfortunately, with every chuckle he made, another shockwave was sent racing through the air like a cannonball, and the cycle repeats.

I watched as a Mankey was knocked off a building, sending it through a roof that they just rebuilt. The two of them were becoming a nuisance, and it was starting to hurt other Pokémon. At this rate, the town will be destroyed again!

Taking a deep breath, I leapt out of my hiding place and shouted as loud as I could.

"_Please stoooop!_" I felt as though I sent out my own shockwave as I bellowed out my plea. Suddenly, everything was silent. The two of them stopped what they were doing and gaped at me. I stood there, in the center of the plaza, frozen in place from a combination of fear and embarrassment.

"Y – you're hurting everyone!" I felt my legs wobble as I continued to shout, "If you keep yelling like that, the whole town will collapse!"

The two Pokémon looked at me with astonished looks on their faces. I took a step back out of nervousness. I didn't know what was going to happen now. Everything felt like a blur as I stared at the two troublemakers. I was afraid, what if they got mad and attacked me? What if I made a horrible mistake? What if they drag Azurill into it? If only Blue was here! More and more frightened thoughts flew through my mind as the seconds ticked by.

"Oh... oh my gosh..." The one with the flower – shaped head covered her mouth with her hands while her big – mouthed partner closed his mouth and scratched his head sheepishly.

"Sunflora..." The big one turned to his partner and mumbled, "What do we do now?"

"I don't know, I've never felt so ashamed before! Eek!" She covered her face completely with her leafy hands and made a noise that sounded like sobbing.

I was taken aback by how they reacted. It was completely unlike what I was imagining. All the tension I was feeling suddenly melted away in an instant.

"What do you me – agh!" My question was cut off when the flowery Pokémon suddenly rushed up and hugged me.

"I'm so, so sorry!" She began to sob into my ruff, "I'm sorry that my big oaf of a partner hurt you!"

"U-uhm...!" I felt incredibly confused and surprised. What was I supposed to do about this?!

"Sunflora," Her partner walked up to us, wearing an expression that was both embarrassed and amused, "I think you're weirding her out. Also, you're suffocating her."

"Eek!" Sunflora quickly let go of my ruff. I coughed a few times, gasping for air. For a flower, she had a pretty strong grip!

"Oooh, I'm so sorry Eevee!" Sunflora apologized again, bowing deeply. Still coughing a little, I looked up at her and tried to give her a reassuring grin.

Her loud – mouthed partner shook his head and looked around. He tapped Sunflora on the shoulder and whispered something to her. They seemed to come to an agreement about something.

"Oooh, that sounds nice," Sunflora said out loud. She faced me and whispered to me, "Eevee, how about we take you to go get something to eat as an apology?"

"E – eh? Well..." Truth be told, I was getting a little peckish. I haven't eaten anything since I woke up this morning, after all. But, I can't just drop everything and go fill up my stomach now. I still have to go find Azurill's brother and Blue!

"I – I'm sorry, but I ca –" I began to say, but suddenly, Azurill leapt on to my head and almost made me bite my tongue.

"Did they say food?!" She cheered loudly, "Come on Fée! Let's go get something to eat!"

"Azurill!" I looked up at the bubbly blue Pokémon on my head, "We can't just go eat! We have to find your brother!"

"But I'm hungry!" She whined, bopping the side of my face with her bubble tail. I shook my head, making her roll off and on to my back.

"We have priorities, Azurill," I scolded, "Reuniting you with your brother is more important than eating right no –"

Suddenly, my stomach growled loudly. I felt a blush racing up into my face as Azurill tittered happily behind me. Sunflora and Loudred both looked at me with amused looks on their faces.

I sighed, "I guess... it wouldn't hurt to go eat for a bit..."

Sunflora and Loudred shared a wide grin while Azurill cheered on my back. I shook my head despondently and mentally apologized to Blue and Marill.

* * *

Blue found himself walking among a crowd of Pokémon in a lively part of town. Everywhere he looked, there were various wooden stands and tables strewn around on the sides of the road. Pokémon wearing aprons and other assorted clothing stood behind the stands and tables, peddling their wares and trying to attract walkers over to their storefronts. Blue wandered with the rest of the crowd, impressed and amazed by all the action going on around him.

"You there. Yes, the Riolu over there."

An odd, worldly sounding voice drifted over the crowd. Blue stopped in his tracks, recognizing the word 'Riolu'. He turned his head and saw a strange sight. Sitting at the side of the road was a suspicious – looking Pokémon.

The Pokémon stood stock still, like that of a statue. Its body was green, with two white, wing – like patterns covering its front. Its head resembled that of a bird, with two long feathers extending out from the back of its head.

Separating himself from the crowd, Blue cautiously approached the stranger. The Pokémon stared at Blue as he approached, never blinking and unmoving.

"You need not be cautious," It spoke without moving its beaked mouth, "I mean you no harm."

"And you are?" Blue said, unconvinced.

"You may call me Xatu," The statue – like Pokémon spoke in a vague voice that sounded neither male nor female, "I am but a humble observer of events. I see all that occurs in this town, and everything that surrounds it."

What the Pokémon just said immediately sent alarm bells ringing inside of Blue's head. He tentatively took a step backwards, worried that the Pokémon knew about his escapade as a stowaway.

"What do you mean by that?" Blue said slowly, preparing himself to run away at a moment's notice.

"Calm yourself, Riolu," Xatu replied sagely. It extended one of its white – colored wings in an apologetic gesture, "I repeat myself, I do not mean to harm you."

Still suspicious, Blue glanced around at where Xatu was sitting. The totem pole – like Pokémon was surrounded by strangely shaped knick – knacks and baubles. Ribbons, shells and wooden carvings were strewn all over the surface of an intricately detailed rug. Behind Xatu was a small, oblong tent that was lazily puffing out purplish – pink smoke from the tip.

"Then," Blue said slowly, "What do you want from me?"

"Its not what I want from you," Xatu gazed deeply into Blue's eyes. Blue took another step backwards, feeling incredibly creeped out by the bird's unblinking gaze. Xatu, however, continued to stare at Blue unflinchingly.

"But rather," Xatu spread out its wings, "It's what you want from me."

"What?" Blue replied. He was confused about what the bird was talking about. Xatu's face remained unchanged, despite Blue's puzzled reply.

"It was fated by the stars for you to find me, Riolu," Xatu announced cryptically, "Perhaps... it means that some of my mystical charms can assist you in your journey."

"Charms?" Blue looked down at the baubles around Xatu's feet, "You mean all this stuff around you?"

"Stu – stuff?" Xatu exclaimed, its former airy tone vanishing for a second. It quickly composed itself again and made a quiet coughing noise before speaking in its arcane tone again, "Y – yes... I believe my... stuff... is the key to your problems, Riolu."

Xatu extended both its wings wide in a dramatic fashion, "These glorious charms were hand crafted by legend and blessed by time! For generations and generations, these magical talismans were passed down by my ancestors, and now, I am giving the masses the chance to behold such majesty!"

"Great power courses through these items!" Xatu cried out loudly, making some of the bystanders turn their heads in surprise, "Such grand strength can only be found here, at the hands of the Xatu family!"

Blue was skeptical. Despite the praise that Xatu was lavishing on his wares, the baubles and gewgaws on the carpet simply looked like junk to him. Regardless, he kept his opinions to himself and bent down, picking up a small, pink ribbon.

"So, what does this do then?" Blue said, pointing at the ribbon. Xatu's eyes flitted down at the ribbon for a split second before returning his gaze back to Blue.

"Ah yes, the Aura Bow," It announced in an arcane voice, "Truly, one of the finest pieces of cloth ever weaved by Pokémon hands. It is a great work that was said to have been crafted by Azelf, the Embodiment of Willpower itself! Handed down to my ancestors as gift for their devotedness, it has been passed through my family for generations and gen – "

"Yes, and what does it do?" Blue interrupted impatiently. Xatu's eyes flickered with a spark of irritation before quickly returning to its usual sheen.

"Great works such as this ribbon must be given the proper amount of respect it deserves, Riolu," Xatu said, its voice tinged with annoyance, "But alas, if you do not wish for me to impress upon you the grand history behind such a powerful item, then I have no choice but to tell you what it does."

"Yes, thank you," Blue said, a sense of irritation was slowly growing inside of him. Xatu released a loud, disappointed sigh and continued. Its voice was notably less mystical – sounding now.

"The Aura Bow is said to grant the wearer a great amount of willpower," It said in an annoyed voice, "If a Pokémon were to wear this, they will find themselves filled with immense mental strength and fortitude! Great mystical power will flow through their body, strengthening every aspect of their physical selves!"

"So in other words, it makes the wearer feel stronger?"

Xatu sighed and shook its head, "If you must say it in such common terms..."

Blue held the ribbon in his paws and stared at it for a minute, much to Xatu's annoyance. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something glint off the sunlight. It was a small necklace that was made out of a small, yellow shell. A ruby – red jewel was set in the center of the shell.

"Ah yes, the Necklace of Memory," Xatu said, noticing Blue's gaze, "Never a more magnificent talisman has been created since its conception! The beautiful ruby present on the shell of an ancient Pokémon was said to have been donated to my ancestor by Uxie, the Pokémon of Memory itself! Passed down through my family through generations and generati –"

"So it helps with memory stuff?" Blue said, quickly interrupting another generations rant by Xatu, "Like, does it help the wearer regain their memories if they lost them?"

"Ahem..." Xatu faked coughing to hide it's growing frustration, "The power of such a charm cannot be quantified with such common explanations!"

"Then what does it do?" Blue replied impatiently, staring at the ruby as it shined in the sunlight, "You called it the Necklace of Memory, so it definitely has something to do with memory, right?"

"Hrgh..." Xatu's frustration was becoming more and more clear, "The necklace is associated with Uxie, the Pokémon of Memory! If that does not convince you, then I do not know what will."

Blue shrugged. He didn't recognize the name Uxie, and even if he did, he wouldn't know anything about it anyway. He picked up the necklace and held it up with the Aura Bow.

"I see that you are interested in these two items," Xatu said, its voice suddenly gaining an eager tone, "You are fortunate. At this moment, I am feeling quite generous. I will sell to you either the Aura Bow or the Necklace of Memory to you for a pittance of 900 Poké."

"...purchase? Poké?" Those words sounded foreign to Blue, "What does that mean?"

"I – what?" Xatu's façade was finally broken. His beak opened wide and his eyes bulged at Blue's puzzled expression. It spoke with an anguished, hoarse tone, "Are you...are you jesting with me?!"

"If that means kidding, then no," Blue said bluntly, "Can you tell me what this 'purchasing' thing is?"

"Oh ancestors, guide me..." Xatu mumbled, covering its face with its wing, "Give me the strength to endure this..."

Xatu spun around in place and dramatically swung aside the flaps into its tent. From within, it withdrew a wingful of small, golden colored coins. Turning around, Xatu presented the small coins to Blue, who regarded them with a curious look.

"Riolu," Xatu said in a tired voice, "This is the currency that we use here in...the civilized world. I understand it might be a concept foreign to a Riolu, but this is how we trade for items here."

"I see," Blue felt a little offended by the bird's remarks, but he decided to let it slide. "So in order for you to give me what I want, I have to give you 900 of this Poké?"

"That is correct." Xatu nodded and put the coins away.

"Hm," Blue thought about his options. He didn't entirely trust the shady bird, but the idea of a necklace that could help him regain his lost memory was tempting. He glanced at the ribbon and the jeweled necklace in his paws one more time.

"Alright then," Blue finally said, "Xatu, do you know where I can go get some Poké?"

"What?" Xatu said, surprised.

"I'll go get you those golden coins, and you hang on to these for me." Blue announced, handing the two charms back to Xatu, "I just need you to tell me where I can go get some Poké!"


	8. The strongest guild of the frontier

**•   
Chapter 8 **

**"The strongest guild of the frontier"**

Xatu gaped in astonishment at the Riolu in front of it with his arm outstretched like a beggar. It simply couldn't believe the gall of the blue – and – black Pokémon. Even if he is a Riolu, he should at least have a scrap of common sense! Xatu decided that he had enough. There was no reason, no gain to continue humoring the foolish Riolu. But, as he was about to shoo the Pokémon away, something interesting caught his eye.

The Riolu sported scars all over his body, one on both arms and several on his left leg. Not to mention, the scars looked relatively recent. Upon further inspection, Xatu noticed that the Riolu had a fairly fit figure. He was definitely one that has seen his fair share of combat.

'It's said that Riolu are known to be formidable fighters on the battlefield,' Xatu surmised internally as he gave Blue's body an intense inspection, 'With the way this one looks, it seems as though he's been through a fair share of battles.'

Xatu's shrewd mind quickly went to work at formulating a cunning plan, 'Perhaps, this Riolu could be my ticket to success... hm, hm, hm...'

"Hello?" Blue was confused and a little annoyed at Xatu's sudden silence, "Hey, are you awake?"

Blue waved a paw in front of Xatu's face, trying to get a reaction out of the unmoving bird. Suddenly, Xatu's wings shot up and tightly grasped Blue's paw. Blue, surprised, quickly withdrew his arm, accidentally smacking Xatu in the beak in the process.

"Whoa!" Blue shouted, "I'm sorry, are you alright?"

"Riolu!" Xatu suddenly shouted in a loud voice, "I have a proposition for you!"

"A what?" Blue stepped back out of surprise, but Xatu quickly followed him forward, kicking aside several baubles while he moved. Xatu grabbed tightly on to Blue's paw, staring at him with bulging eyes.

"A proposition! A deal! A trade, if you will!" Xatu said maniacally, "How about it, Riolu?"

"Hold on, hold on!" Blue shouted back pulling himself out of the crazed shopkeeper's grasp, "Slow down, what in the world are you talking about?"

"Hm, hm, hm..." Xatu chuckled darkly as he solemnly placed his wings on his chest, "It's simple..." He pointed at the two charms Blue had in his paws, "You're interested in those charms, are you not?"

"I suppose...?" Blue replied uncertainly. He was disturbed by Xatu's sudden change in demeanor, but he was curious about what the bird meant by 'a deal.'

"Furthermore!" Xatu opened his wings wide, forming some sort of odd looking pose that made it resemble a totem pole, "By your words, am I wrong to assume that you are hopelessly penniless?"

"If that means 'I have no Poké with me,'" Blue said bluntly, crossing his arms in annoyance, "Then I'm pretty sure I already told you that."

"Very well!" Xatu announced loudly, "Then I have a proposition for you!"

"Now you're just repeating yourself."

"Quiet!" Xatu squawked impatiently, "Now, listen up!"

Xatu spun around and quickly withdrew something from inside its tent. When it turned back around, it had in its wing a colorful sheet of paper. Blue eyed it curiously as Xatu handed it over to him to see. It was an advertisement of some sort. Crude drawings of strong, beefy – looking Pokémon were strewn all over the page. At the bottom of the page was a couple lines of messy writing.

"What's this?" Blue said, staring at the muscled Pokémon drawn on the poster with mild amusement.

"Read it, and you'll see," Xatu said, pointing at the writing at the bottom of the poster. Blue stared at the writing for a while, but could only manage a puzzled expression as he tried to read it.

"Uh..." Blue mumbled, trying to make heads or tails of the symbols scribbled on the poster, "Hm..."

"Could it be..." Xatu gaped at him in disbelief, "You cannot read?"

Blue scratched the back of his head sheepishly and nodded. Xatu covered his face with its wing and groaned in frustration. It snatched the poster out of Blue's paws and mumbled something rude under its breath. It smoothed out the poster and cleared its throat and began to read out loud.

"'Come one and come all! Machoke's Guild invites the strongest and the bravest to partake in a festival of muscle and sweat! Today, when the sun is at its highest, Machoke's Guild will be holding a grand battle royale at the main plaza! Show off your strength, skill and bravado in front of the strongest guild of the frontier!'"

"Grand battle royale?" Blue repeated questioningly as Xatu rolled the poster up, "What does this have to do with the charms?"

"Hm, hm, hm...!" Xatu chuckled and handed the rolled up poster over to Blue, "It has everything to do with the charms, Riolu."

Xatu pointed at Blue and stated dramatically, "You'll be partaking in this battle, Riolu!"

"Eh?" Blue yelled in surprise, "Why?"

"Consider it a trade of sorts," Xatu said, "If you battle in this boorish event and win, I'll give you one of these two charms as a reward. Is that fair?"

"I don't see how this benefits you in any way," Blue remarked, staring at the poster, "I have no problems with fighting, but I don't understand why I have to do this. Besides, shouldn't I be getting Poké?"

"Forget the Poké!" Xatu said hastily, brushing Blue's question off with a wave of its wing, "Consider this a favor for me. I – uh – really want to see you battle and win in this event, that's all."

"Besides," Xatu continued in a sly voice, "It'll probably take you about a week to scrounge up enough Poké to even afford those charms. This deal's completely in your favor, Riolu."

Blue eyed Xatu suspiciously. He was skeptical about the entire thing, since it sounded too good to be true. But, he didn't have much choice. Xatu had a point, he had no Poké, and had no idea how to even get some.

Blue glanced at the poster again and thought about it. All he had to do was go to this place and fight, right? And if he won, he'll get what he wants. When he thought about it that way, it didn't sound as bad. Besides, despite having multiple issues with his memory and knowledge, there was one thing he was quite confident of. His strength.

"Alright, I'll bite," Blue said, "I'll do this grand battle or whatever. Just promise me that you'll uphold your part of the deal, alright?"

"Very well then!" Xatu exclaimed, extending a wing out to Blue, "It's a deal!"

Blue nodded as he and Xatu shook on their agreement.

* * *

I sighed contently as I pushed my now – empty plate toward the center of the table. The food was absolutely delicious, especially spending an entire night having eaten nothing at all. Sitting back in my chair, I watched my companions as they ate their meals. Azurill was resting inside of a pie tin that once contained an entire apple pie. Sunflora was delicately slicing apart the berries on her plate into small portions with her leafy hands before eating them. Loudred on the other hand...

"_Burrrrrrp!_" He released an incredibly loud – and smelly – belch after he unloaded his entire meal into his massive mouth. I couldn't even tell what he ate before it all just vanished into his enormous gullet!

"_Loudred!_" Sunflora shouted as she glared at him, "You're being so disgusting, oooh!"

"Eheh," Loudred scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "It's just my compliments to the chef, ha, ha!"

I spotted said chef giving Loudred a dirty look from behind the kitchen counter. Feeling embarrassed, I mouthed an apology to him. But the chef glared at me as well before ducking back into the kitchen.

"Wow!" Azurill shouted gleefully, bouncing up and down in her little pie tin, "That was cool! Can you teach me how to burp like that, Loudred?"

"Heh. It takes years and years of training to get that sort of belch power!" Loudred said proudly and shamelessly, "It's a skill that not just any Pokémon can learn!"

"That's amazing!" Azurill sounded so genuinely impressed that I couldn't help but smile as I took a sip out of my drink. Sunflora just sighed and shook her head, covering her face with her leaves out of embarrassment.

At first, I thought Loudred was just a big, scary Pokémon. But, as I watched him earnestly try to teach Azurill the secrets of belching, I found my opinion of him changing. He wasn't just a big, scary Pokémon that shouts a lot, he was a friendly guy who, well, shouts a lot. I giggled as Azurill tried to do one of Loudred's belches, but only managed a quiet puffing noise from her mouth.

"Ooh, I just can't do it!" She stamped her feet inside the little pie tin out of frustration while Loudred chortled in his seat.

Amused, I plucked Azurill out of her pie tin and looked her in the eye, "Azurill, girls like us shouldn't be trying to make rude burping noises like that, right Sunflora?" I glanced over to the flowery Pokémon, who nodded in return.

"I don't care! I wanna burp just like Loudred does!" She pouted unhappily. I sighed in response and put her on the table. Sunflora offered her a few pieces of the berry she was slicing up, which cheered Azurill up almost immediately.

"Here Fée, you have one too!" Azurill said, handing me a berry piece with her tail. I thanked her and took it.

"Oh my gosh, you two are just too cute!" Sunflora said gleefully, clasping her leaves together cheerfully as she watched us chew on our berries, "You two are just like sisters!"

"Oh no, it's not like that," I blushed, feeling a little bashful, "We've been friends for a long time, that's all."

"Oooh, that reminds me!" Sunflora said as she handed another small berry piece over to Azurill, "Which town did you two come from? Spring Town? Post Town? Oooh, was it Seaside Town? I love meeting people from other towns! Eek!"

I shook my head and smiled at Sunflora. She must've assumed that we were a part of that huge crowd today, "I'm sorry to disappoint you, Sunflora. But I've lived in Treasure Town pretty much all my life."

"Me too!" Azurill added, "My brother and I lived here for a long time too!"

"Oh my gosh, really?" Sunflora didn't sound disappointed at all, in fact, she sounded even happier, "Well, Loudred and I are also Treasure Townnites! Ooh, that's a good term! I should write it down later."

"So you're also from Treasure Town, eh?" Loudred chuckled, "How'dya feel when you woke up today and saw a ton of strange new Pokémon wandering around? I pretty much screamed in surprise when I saw that crowd!"

"Yeah, and everyone heard it too..." Sunflora remarked snarkily, glancing over at Loudred. Loudred just grinned and leaned back in his chair nonchalantly.

"I was really happy!" Azurill squeaked, eager to be a part of the conversation, "It was like being at a big festival! I saw so many new faces and lotsa cool and scary looking Pokémon!"

Azurill bounced over to Loudred and roared at him, pretending that she was a big, scary Pokémon. Loudred responded by pretending to be scared while Azurill continued her scary Poké – impression.

"I wasn't actually in town this morning," I admitted to Sunflora, "But when I got back, I was really surprised to find that I couldn't get back in without waiting in line, heh, heh."

"Oh my gosh! That must've been awful!" Sunflora said, looking concerned, "I can't imagine how tiring it must be to be stuck in that huge crowd all day, ooh!"

"Well, it wasn't all bad," I said, thinking back to earlier today, "I got to see a lot of new Pokémon, and I met a few new friends too."

Feldie and Lazur's faces came swimming into my mind. I wondered how the two of them are doing now, and whether or not they managed to get into town now.

"That's nice," Loudred said, gently nudging Azurill in the cheek, "Our guildmaster's always going on and on about making new friends."

"Guildmaster?" My ears perked up when I heard him say that word, "Are you two... explorers by any chance?"

"Yep! You're completely right!" Sunflora said in an excited voice, "Loudred and I are both explorers! Well, apprentice explorers, anyway!"

"I'm skilled enough to graduate anytime I want though," Loudred boasted, puffing his chest out proudly. Sunflora gave him a sly glance.

"Oho, and who's the one who came back the other day all beat up and exhausted during their last expedition?" She snickered as Loudred deflated like a balloon.

"T – that's low, Sunflora!" He said, his blue face rapidly turning red, "What about you? Don't forget about that time I had to go save your leafy behind when you got cornered by those outlaws? If it wasn't for me, you probably wouldn't have all your petals right now!"

"Oooh, you promised to never bring that up again!"

The two of them glowered angrily at each other while Azurill and I watched in amusement. Inwardly, I felt a little envious. From the sounds of things, they've gone on a lot of adventures already. Both with each other and by themselves. They sounded so carefree, so casual about the whole thing, and yet, when I was trying to go into the Beach Cave yesterday, I was pretty much ready to faint before I even entered the cave!

But that's probably why they're explorers already and I'm not. They've already taken the first step and became apprentices, and now they're confident and strong enough to go out and have adventures. I felt a small burning desire flare up from within me. I wanted to be like them, to be able to just casually go out and have adventures too! I wanted to explore just like them!

"Speaking of which," Sunflora snapped me out of my thoughts when she addressed me, "What are you planning on doing later, Eevee?"

"What am I doing later?" I quickly pooled together my options. I still had to find Marill and Blue, of course. But I also needed to find a place that could help Blue with his injuries. A sense of urgency rose from within me as I remembered about Blue's injured leg and arms, "I... I need to go find my friends."

"You need to find your friends?" Loudred repeated energetically. He pounded his chest with a beefy arm and grinned, "Well you can leave it to us! We're experts at finding things, right Sunflora?"

"That's right, eek!" She squeaked as Loudred suddenly grabbed her arm, "We'll help you as much as we can, Eevee! It's the least we can do to make up for what happened earlier."

"Thank you so much Sunflora! Loudred!" I bowed my head down gratefully, "I'm so glad I met you two!"

"So who are we looking for?" Loudred sniffed sheepishly as he got up from the table, "You got a name, a face, anything?"

"We're looking for my brother Marill!" Azurill said cheerfully as she leaped off the table and only my back, "He looks kinda like me, but bigger and rounder. He's also really scared all the time so he'll probably faint when he sees you!"

"I'm also looking for my friend, Blue," I added, "He's a Riolu, and he should be in town somewhere by now. We got separated in the crowd earlier, and I've been trying to find him ever since."

"Oh my gosh, a Riolu?" Sunflora said with a surprised look on her face, "Now that's a rare sight! I haven't seen a Riolu before, but it should be easy to find him in town, right Loudred?"

"I've met Riolu before on an expedition," Loudred commented, rubbing his large, circular ears thoughtfully, "I remember them being pretty rude, kinda unsociable Pokémon. They're also pretty strong too. One of them nearly knocked my block off when I approached them, heh."

"Unsociable? Rude?" I said questioningly. True, Blue was a little weird at times, but for all the time I've had to get to know him, he wasn't cold or distant at all. In fact, he was pretty nice and charming. I thought back to all the times he encouraged me and hugged me back at the Beach Cave. Suddenly, I felt a strange blush creep on to my face. I quickly brushed my face with my paws and tried to think about something else.

"I'm not saying your friend is like that," Loudred quickly replied, "I'm sure your pal is a pretty swell guy, to have a friend like you! Just because the Riolu I've met are rude and jerks doesn't mean your pal is, right Sunflo – ow!"

"Loudred, that's enough of that!" Sunflora scolded, smacking him angrily with a leaf, "Her friend is probably somebody really important to her, so don't go around saying bad things about him!"

"But I didn't..." Loudred mumbled under his breath.

"Anyway," Sunflora said, ignoring Loudred's gripes, "Loudred and I will go look around the shopping plaza and the guild areas while you and Azurill should stay within the main plaza. If we find your buddies, I'll have Loudred give you a signal."

"You wont miss it!" Loudred gave a big, smug smile. Sunflora sighed and shook her head.

"We'll meet you in the main plaza, by the fountain if we find either Azurill's brother or your friend, alright?"

"Sounds like a plan," I replied, giving Sunflora a smile, "Thank you for your help again, Sunflora. Loudred."

"Ooooh, it's no big deal," Sunflora said as she tried to cover her blushing face with her leaves, "I just love helping others, don't you Loudred?"

"Yep!" He shouted. The plate of berry slices that Sunflora worked on so intensively earlier was instantly sent flying by the shockwave created by Loudred's voice. The four of us watched, aghast, as the white plate went sailing through the air and hit the opposite wall of the restaurant. Where it immediately shattered into a million white pieces.

"Oops." Loudred scratched the back of his head sheepishly while Sunflora began to hit him over and over with her leaves.

"Loudred, you oaf!"

The chef was peeking out at us again, and he didn't look very happy at what we just did. I gulped and quickly turned to face everyone.

"We should get going now."

The four of us nodded and quickly dashed out the front door. From behind me, I could hear the chef yelling angrily at us.

I guess I wont be able to eat here anymore...

* * *

A crowd of Pokémon watched with bated breath as a group of Geodude slowly hovered into the air. Then, the Geodude clasped their hands together and formed a large ring with their bodies in midair. With a hearty bellow, the Geodude slammed down and struck the ground with a resonating crash. Dust and sand went flying everywhere as the Geodude impacted the earth.

"Woooh! Yeaaah!" The crowd of Pokémon around the Geodude all cheered loudly as the cloud of dust settled. In the center of the crowd was a large, rocky circle. Perfect for a combat ring.

One Pokémon stepped into the ring, silencing the crowd immediately with his commanding presence. The Pokémon was ripped, covered from head to toe with powerful, sinewy muscles, which he showed off by flexing in front of the entire crowd. Then, he struck a dynamic pose, pointing upwards to the sky with a clenched fist while kneeling as a legion of round, ball – like Voltorb exploded behind him, sending sparks and flame into the air. The crowd went ballistic, whooping and cheering for the brawny Pokémon like mad.

Said Pokémon grinned at all the attention he was getting. He stood back up straight and pointed towards the crowd with his well – toned arms.

"Dynamic!" He exclaimed showily as he made another flexing pose, "I, Machoke of Treasure Town, welcome you all to my grand festival of muscle and strength!"

His words were punctuated by a flock of Pidgeotto zooming over the crowd, scattering confetti and streamers from their talons. A crew of bug – like Kricketune began to play a lively melody with their claws, while a group of Minccinno and Cinccino sang along, serenading the crowd with a bubbly, uplifting song.

"Now, I know you're all ready to jump in and start the rumble," Machoke shouted over the cheers and the music, "Trust me, I am too!"

He grinned at the crowd and pounded his fists against each other, making a loud sound akin to an explosion.

"But the bean counters at my guild told me that I gotta announce this first," He shrugged with a bored look on his face, making the crowd laugh out loud, "Nothing I can do about that folks!"

A Mankey swung down from a nearby rooftop and landed next to Machoke. He handed Machoke a small scroll of paper and then leapt out of the ring and vanished into the crowd. Machoke unfurled the scroll.

"Ahem!" He coughed loudly, more so out of dramatic emphasis than actually clearing his throat, "Let it be known that all Pokémon battling here today will be under the watch of The Machoke Guild! Any Pokémon looking forward to apprenticing under our banner should try their best and battle as hard as they can! We don't care about winners or losers, we want you to show us your best stuff!"

He crumpled the scroll up into a small, papery ball and chucked it into the crowd, "And that's that! You wanna be apart of my guild? Then you get out there and battle as hard as you can! Show us that you have what it takes to be a part of _the strongest guild of the frontier!_"

He made another flashy pose in the center of the arena. The Voltorb crew behind him set off another series of loud explosions, which signaled the beginning of the festival of muscle.

"Now, let's begiiiiiin!" Machoke shouted and leapt high into the air as the crowd around him began to applaud and yell. He snapped his fingers while in midair, summoning a Staraptor to swoop down and snag him right at the apex of his jump. Machoke flew in a circle around the crowd, giving everyone an encouraging thumbs up before departing for his seat on the roof of a building.

* * *

Blue made a low whistle, impressed by the series of events. He and Xatu had walked from the shopping plaza over to the main plaza. Half of the entire plaza had been cordoned off just for this event. Tall scaffolds and platforms were set up for musical performers and other entertainers. The shop stands around the plaza had been repurposed by the guild, and were now selling memorabilia that advertised Machoke's guild. Blue wandered over to one of the stands and saw that the store was selling long strips of cloth that had Machoke's mug plastered all over it.

"Machoke Focus Bands! You'll never faint if you wear one of these babies!" A Machop manning the store boasted. He was wearing one of the headbands, "Only 700 Poké! Available for a limited time only!"

Blue scratched his head. How could a gaudy headband prevent someone from fainting? As he was trying to puzzle out the logic behind such a thing, he was suddenly forcefully pulled away from the stand.

"Riolu, we're not here to gawk or shop!" Xatu scolded angrily, "Now come with me, we're signing you up for the main event!"

"I understand, now stop pulling my arm!" Blue winced as he felt the scar on his arm twinge in pain as Xatu yanked on his paw.

Xatu lead him through the crowd and toward a large wooden stand at the side of the circular ring. Blue looked up at the stand. There was a large billboard attached to the top of it, displaying a rather surprisingly well – drawn picture of Machoke, and two other Pokémon beside him. Blue assumed that it must be his partners.

"Ah, excuse me!" Xatu said as they neared the stand. Two, girly – looking Pokémon stood behind a table, one clad in white and the other dressed in all black. Both of them were busy scribbling away at pieces of paper strewn all over the surface of the table. The white - colored one looked up at Xatu with a tired look in her eye.

"Are you another contender?" She said with an exhausted voice, "Name and place of origin, please."

"Oh no, no, no, no," Xatu quickly said, waving his wings wildly, "I'm not the one contending, it's this Pokémon here."

He gestured over to Blue, who was gazing up at the incredibly gaudy – looking sign above the stand, "He's the one."

"Is that a Riolu?" The Pokémon leaned over the table and stared interestingly at Blue, "Wow, I've never seen one before!"

"Kirlia, stop staring at the contestants and do your job," Her partner scolded as she pulled Kirlia back on to her seat, "You can ogle them all you want after the event's over."

"Who said I was ogling, Gothorita?" Kirlia said indignantly, "Don't think I didn't see you sneaking glances at that Gurdurr earlier. Honestly, I can't understand your taste."

"You're just too childish to appreciate the charm of a well – muscled Pokémon!" Gothorita retorted snobbishly "You must look past the surface and see the inner strength!"

"Oh yes, because gross, sweaty body builders are so good – looking inside as they are outside," Kirlia replied dismissively, "Now that Tyrogue earlier, that was a hunk!"

"Um...our registration please?" Xatu interrupted, "Can we get him entered in the event already?"

"Oh, right, of course," Kirlia quickly said, blushing, "Riolu, right? Where are you from?"

"Uh..." Blue mumbled. He didn't know what he should say. Would they accept 'from the ocean' as an answer?

"It doesn't matter where he's from," Xatu replied impatiently, brushing off the question, "Just write down Crystal Cave or whatever."

"Alright then, Crystal Cave it is," Kirlia said as she jotted it down on a piece of paper, "Mmhm, okay! All done."

The green – haired Pokémon bent down underneath the table and withdrew a small, rounded object. Blue noticed that it had the number '27' printed on its surface as she handed it over to him.

"This is your badge," Kirlia explained, pointing at the object, "You'll enter the ring and fight once your number is called. Your number's 27, don't forget it, okay?"

"Alright," Blue nodded as he held the badge up to the sunlight to get a better look at it, "Thanks, uh, Kirlia."

"Good luck!" She shouted as Blue and Xatu left to join the crowd of contestants, "If you win, don't forget that I was the one who signed you up!"

"Kirlia..." Gothorita groaned, shaking her head and covering her face with her hand.

* * *

"Contestants number 10 and 56, please enter the ring!"

Two shadows flew out of the crowd and landed inside the arena. One of them had a short, lanky figure. His arms and waist were wrapped with faded white bandages, and he was wearing small, brown shoes on his feet. On his chest was a gleaming white badge that had the number 10 printed on it. The Pokémon glared at his opponent as he cracked his knuckles menacingly.

Standing opposite of contestant 10 was a similarly short, but muscular Pokémon. He resembled a small, child – sized panda. He sneered at the lanky Pokémon and played with the tiny leaf that he stuck in his mouth.

"Tyrogue from Pokémon Square and Pancham from Unity Town," The announcer was a Buneary floating in the air, holding on to a Drifloon. She looked down at the two contestants standing in the ring and said, "Are you two ready?"

"I'm ready." Tyrogue announced, taking up a fighting stance.

"Let's go get this over with already!" Pancham shouted, tapping his feet against the ground impatiently, "Let's go!"

"Alright, both fighters ready!" Buneary raised her left paw – the one that she wasn't using to hold on to the balloon Pokémon – and swung it down, "And begin!"

Once he heard the signal, Tyrogue charged toward Pancham at a blisteringly fast speed. He drew back his right fist, readying himself to punch the black and white Pokémon right in the face. The crowd cheered loudly at the Tyrogue's daring move.

But suddenly, right before Tyrogue's attack landed, he froze in midair. The cheers faded as everyone watched Tyrogue crumple on to the ground, stunned. Pancham snickered and moved back a step, letting the lanky Pokémon fall down on to where he was standing.

"What happened?" Asked several members of the audience. Pancham, however, wasn't interested in answering any questions and instead, leapt forward with his arm drew back.

"Hya – ha!" He shouted – half laughing and half howling – as he thrust his arm forward, right at Tyrogue's fallen form. However, right before the panda's punch struck, Tyrogue's hand suddenly shot up and grabbed Pancham's fist, stopping his attack

"That was a dirty trick," Tyrogue snarled, his face dirty from hitting the ground, "I wont fall for that again!"

"W – wait!" Pancham said in a scared voice, the leaf slipping off his lips, but Tyrogue had already gotten back up on his feet. Swiftly, Tyrogue yanked on Pancham's fist and pulled him off the ground, flipping him into the air helplessly.

Tyrogue watched as Pancham flailed wildly in the air for a second. Then, right before Pancham hit the ground, he jumped toward the panda with his right foot outstretched. He crashed into Pancham in midair, his foot digging itself deep into Pancham's side. Pancham was sent flying over the crowd as Tyrogue deftly rebounded off Pancham's body. Tyrogue stood up tall and struck a victorious pose as a crashing noise was heard in the distance.

"A – ah..." Buneary and Drifloon gaped at the unconscious Pancham lying in a small crater beside the crowd. Buneary quickly recomposed herself and announced, "Pancham has fainted! Our first victory goes to contestant number 10: Tyrogue from Pokémon Square!"

"Wooooh! Yeaaah!" The crowd went wild as they cheered for their first victor. Tyrogue walked out of the ring in a dignified fashion as a couple of Audino rushed past him to go resuscitate the unconscious Pancham.

"Now that was exciting!" Buneary exclaimed loudly, "But there's more to come! Let's welcome our next contestants...!"

* * *

"That was a pretty impressive move he did there, don't you think? Quickly paralyzing that Tyrogue with a forceful leer to stop his attack in midair."

"Ha ha!" Machoke laughed, "Too bad he underestimated Tyrogue's spirit! I keep telling ya, Hariyama, that guts and valor always triumph over dirty tricks or cunning plans!"

The massive, hulking Pokémon nodded. He crossed his arms as he sat next to Machoke, staring intently at the ring below them. He looked over the crowd of contestants standing at the side of the ring, all of them waiting for their chance to duke it out in front of the crowd.

"Any Pokémon catch your eye yet?" Hariyama asked. Machoke grumbled and cupped his chin.

"It's too early to tell," He said, shrugging his muscled shoulders, "All of them have potential. But what we want are the strongest, the bravest and the best of the best!"

"Of course," Hariyama replied, having heard the same speech before a million times, "I suppose we'll find one eventually."


	9. A high stakes game

**• ****  
Chapter 9:**

**"...a high stakes game..."  
**

"Wow... what's going on here?"

After we parted ways with Loudred and Sunflora, Azurill and I resumed our search for my friend Blue and Azurill's brother, Marill. While Loudred and Sunflora went to go look around the guilds and shopping districts, Azurill and I wandered back to the main plaza. We were suddenly greeted by cheering crowds, loud music and a whole lot of yelling.

"Is there an event going on?" I wondered aloud as I stared at the sight in front of us. All the Pokémon in the crowd were standing in a big circle around something that we couldn't see. Wooden stands and signs were erected around the place, but I couldn't make out what was written on them from where we were standing.

"I can't see anything!" Azurill balanced on her tail and tried to peer over the heads of the Pokémon in the crowd, "I wanna know what's going on!"

"Maybe we should go somewhere else," I said, glancing uneasily at the wild crowd, "I don't think Marill would be here. It's too loud and crazy for someone like him."

"Mrrgh...!" She pouted angrily as she leaned left and right, trying to peek past the crowd to no avail. I sighed and reached forward to put her back on my back, but then, to my horror, she suddenly bounced away from my paws and toward the crowd.

"I'm going to get a better look!" I heard her shout back at me.

"Azurill, wait! Don't get separated...!" By the time I started to warn her, she had already disappeared from my sight. I covered my mouth in shock.

She was so small, what if a Pokémon accidentally hits her? Or worse, steps on her?! All sorts of horrible thoughts came into my head as I fretted out of worry.

"Azurill!" I shouted out loud, but my voice was quickly drowned out by the cheers around me. I swung my head left and right, hoping to catch sight of her bouncing blue tail, but all I could see were the various unfamiliar Pokémon around me. I continued to weave around the bystanders, constantly yelling out Azurill's name in hopes that she'll hear it.

"Ooh..." I had no choice, I had to find her before she gets hurt! Taking a deep breath, I ran into the crowd after Azurill.

* * *

"Contestants 27 and 15, please enter the ring!"

Blue's ears perked up when he heard his number being called. He stood up from the rock he was sitting on and stretched out his arms and legs in preparation for his bout. Xatu, the totem pole – like bird walked up to him, wringing its wings together worriedly.

"What's with that look?" Blue said as he stretched out his arms and legs, watching Xatu fidget nervously, "You look like you have bugs crawling all over you."

"Hush, Riolu," Xatu replied, glancing around him with a worried expression, "You remember our deal, right?"

Blue nodded. All he had to do was get in the ring and win a few battles, and he gets a gift from the creepy bird. It didn't sound complicated or difficult, which was why Blue accepted it in the first place. Xatu nodded back and gave a big sigh.

"Alright," The bird said in a relieved tone, "You go off and fight. I'll have to be somewhere else for a moment. There's something of import that I must attend to."

"You wont be watching me fight?" Blue said, feeling oddly disappointed.

Xatu shook its head, "Although I may not be by your side," It said in a mystical, albeit forced sounding voice, "Let it be known that I – as well as the spirits of my ancestors – will support you in your battles."

"Sure, why not?" Blue shrugged, feeling skeptical, "The more the merrier, I suppose."

"Right, off you go then," Xatu hurried, pushing him toward the ring with its wings, "Be sure to win, remember that!"

"No need to remind me," Blue retorted, cracking his knuckles confidently, "I wont lose."

"Right, right..." Xatu replied, sounding a little uncertain despite Blue's confidence, "Good luck then."

Blue turned and nodded to the totem pole bird. After Blue vanished into the crowd, Xatu sighed and quickly scampered in a direction away from the crowd.

* * *

"Azurill?" I continued to shout futilely. My throat was getting sore, and I was coughing from dust getting into my mouth, but I continued to keep yelling out her name, "Azurill, where are you?"

The crowd surrounding the plaza was so dense and so loud that I felt as though my eyes and ears were quickly becoming worthless. Feeling a little dizzy from the noise and action around me, I ducked out of the crowd and into a less populated area of the plaza.

I sat down next to the Founders' Fountain to catch my breath. I shook some dust off my fur and rubbed my eyes, which were beginning to get irritated by all the dust. I flipped open my bag and checked to see if my belongings were still inside.

I sighed in relief as I saw my precious treasure gleam dimly inside the cloth bag. Sitting next to my treasure was a small package of food and berries that I saved from my meal at the restaurant. I planned to give them to Blue once I found him, since he probably hasn't eaten anything since we left the Beach Cave.

"...playing a high stakes game, you know that?"

My ears, although sore and ringing from all the noise, suddenly picked up a strange, sly sounding voice apart from the crowd. It came from the other side of the Founders' Fountain, just out of my line of sight.

"I'm aware of the stakes!"

Another voice rang out. This time, I recognized the speaker. Cautiously, I closed my bag and poked my head around the side of the Founders' Fountain. There, standing in the shade created by the fountain statues, and almost completely hidden from sight, stood an odd group of Pokémon.

The group mostly consisted of Meowth, but standing at the head of it all was a large, sleek – looking Persian. All of the cats were holding a gleaming, golden coin in their paws.

I turned my gaze toward who the cats were all looking at, and had to quickly stifle a gasp. It was that odd shopkeeper from the shopping district, the one that sold all sorts of odd trinkets, Xatu. The tall, bird – like Pokémon was standing in front of the entire crowd of Meowth, looking scared out of his (her?) mind.

"I must admit, I was... surprised when you sought us out of your own volition," The Persian, who I assumed to be the leader of the clan of Meowth, deftly juggled his coin between his paws as he spoke to Xatu, "I had assumed you had given up on our deal, prophet."

The Persian flicked the coin up into the air and caught it as it fell down. He held the sparkling coin up against Xatu's beak, waving it back and forth in a playful fashion, as if he was toying with him.

"I... I didn't give up on the deal, Persian," Xatu said in a quiet voice as he brushed the coin out of his face, "I see all, don't you remember? I see our deal being successful for me!"

"Oho? You say you _saw _something, did you, prophet?" Persian said with a mocking sneer while the rest of the Meowth began to snicker. Xatu appeared to shrink as he was faced with the cats' laughter, "I suppose that would explain why you're so... eager... to gamble on such lopsided odds..."

I watched as Xatu quivered. Whether it was out of fear or anger, I didn't know. But he remained silent as the Persian continued to speak.

"Still, I'm not one to pass up such a delicious morsel such as this," Persian raised his head and licked his lips, "if you're willing to play... prophet... then I will be glad to accommodate you."

Suddenly, faster than my eyes could react, Persian's paw was hovering in front of Xatu's beak. The coin had vanished, and in its place was a set of sharp, dangerous claws. I watched in fear as the cat's claws hovered dangerously close to Xatu's face, threatening to cut him at any moment.

"Be warned though, prophet... If your gamble does not succeed..."

Xatu gulped audibly as he watched the claws inched ever closer.

"Then not even your generations and generations of ancestors can help you..."

Persian's claws suddenly retracted and he backed off, making both Xatu and I sigh with relief. The crew of Meowth all grinned widely at each other and began to snicker loudly. Persian produced his golden coin again and flipped it into the air.

"I wonder, prophet," Persian said in a darkly playful voice, "I wonder if you can truly _see_ the future, heh heh..."

He flicked the coin over toward Xatu, who caught it with its wing, "That coin shall be the symbol of our deal. If your little blue friend is as good as you assume, then consider it yours. However, if the opposite is true, then I must ask you to return that coin... and more..."

The Meowth began to snicker even louder as Xatu nervously looked at the coin. Persian held up a single paw and silenced his crew.

"Good luck, prophet."

The group of cats turned around and walked away. A few Meowth turned around as they retreated, making taunting faces at the frightened bird standing alone in the shadows. Despite how tall Xatu was, in the wake of what just happened, he looked as though he was as small as a Pidgey. Even though I knew it was none of my business, I wanted to go out and ask him if he was alright. But as I was deliberating whether to show myself or not, Xatu suddenly ran off in the opposite direction, completely missing me.

Perhaps it was for the best, I thought. I've never seen that crowd of Meowth in town before, and I've also definitely never seen that scary Persian ever in my entire life. My gut told me that associating with them was dangerous, and that I should just leave and push that entire scene out of my memory.

But the sight of Xatu, whom I've always known to be proud, if not a little strange, running away like a frightened child made me shudder a little inside.

* * *

Blue ducked low to avoid another straight punch from the Mienfoo . From his lowered position, he tried to counter the attack with a right uppercut. However, his opponent was too quick, and deftly avoided his wild swing by simply jumping back. While Blue was recovering from his failed attack, the Mienfoo launched himself off the ground and pounced forward, foot first.

"Guaagh!" Blue tried to leap away to safety, but a sudden spasm of pain from his right leg prevented him from moving. As a result, he took a heavy blow to the chest, knocking the air out of his lungs and sending him skidding backwards. Miraculously, Blue managed to stay on his feet. He clutched his chest, wincing as he felt a bruise forming.

"Hyah!" The Mienfoo shouted a loud battlecry as she mercilessly launched another high – flying kick at the injured Riolu. Blue desperately raised up his arms to block the blow. But it was futile, as the force from the kick simply blew his arms away, forcing him backwards another few paces as his injured chest was revealed. The Mienfoo smirked as she saw the red target painted on the Riolu's chest, and prepared to do another flying kick.

Blue, realizing that he was now in severe danger, quickly tried to raise his arms again, but blocking the previous kick left them numb and paralyzed. Gritting his teeth, he watched as the Mienfoo crouched down in preparation for the finishing blow. The next second, the Mienfoo rocketed forward, her eyes glinting with the prospect of victory.

There was only one chance, and Blue couldn't afford to give it up. Right as the Mienfoo's foot was about to reach him, Blue poured every remaining drop of strength he had left into his legs and kicked off the ground. But it wasn't enough, he still couldn't muster enough power to jump, and ended up awkwardly tossing himself to the side like a rag doll.

But it was just enough to avoid a direct blow. The Mienfoo's kick just barely missed his target, and ended up slicing through the air. The sheer power that the Mienfoo put behind her finishing blow carried her past the fallen Blue and sent her spiraling through the air. A second later, she violently crashed into the dirt in an awkward heap.

Despite his bones and muscles screaming in abject pain, Blue forced himself back on to his feet. He took a single glance at his dazed opponent. He didn't have much time before the Mienfoo recovered. Blue clenched his right fist and drew it back like a bow and arrow. He charged forward, ignoring the cracking and popping noises his legs were making. He had only enough strength left for one more blow, he had to make it count!

"Take this!" Right as he reached the Mienfoo, he slammed his left foot hard on to the ground, forcing himself to a sudden stop. Using the remaining momentum he had left, Blue launched his right fist forward like a cannonball. He heard a satisfying _crunch_ as his fist smashed squarely into the Mienfoo's surprised face. Suddenly, the Mienfoo was airborne again.

_Crash!_ The mouse – like Pokémon found himself lying in a crater of his own making. She groaned in pain and attempted to push herself off the ground. But whatever remaining strength she had left quickly fled her body, causing her arms to wobble and ultimately forced her to flop back to the ground, unconscious. A group of Audino hastily charged into the ring and surrounded the Mienfoo.

"_Uoooooh!_" The crowd cheered wildly as the Audino waved their arms, signaling that the Pokémon was unable to battle any more. Blue breathed deeply as he raised his right arm in victory. The crowd cheered and applauded again as Blue slowly made his way out of the ring.

"And the winner is... contestant 27, Riolu from Crystal Cave!" The Buneary floating above the battlefield announced, "Congratulations!"

It was a hard won fight. Blue staggered out of the ring and into the crowd. A few of the Pokémon in the crowd congratulated him and wanted to speak with him about his battle. Blue, however, ignored them and pushed his way out of the crowd. He wanted to find somewhere quiet and peaceful so he could tend to his wounds.

But, right as he was about to exit the crowd, he suddenly tripped on something underneath him and painfully slammed into the dirt.

"Gah..." He groaned and pushed himself off the ground. He gingerly rubbed his now – aching nose and looked down at what he had tripped on.

Blue saw a pair of blue colored balls attached to each other by a black string. He grumbled as he leaned down to pick up the odd toy, but right as his paw was about to touch it, the ball twitched and rolled away on its own. Startled, Blue withdrew his arm and stared warily at it.

"Ow, ow, ow..." The ball spoke in a youthful, almost childish voice. She rolled itself upright, revealing two tiny feet underneath her. Blue leaned over to the other side of the ball, curious about who she was. He found himself staring into a pair of teeny – tiny eyes as he did so.

"Eeep!" The small ball – like Pokémon bounced backwards, squeaking in surprise. Then, without warning, she hopped on to her feet and suddenly dashed away with surprising speed.

"Hey, wait!" Blue shouted as he quickly got back on his feet. Blue chased after the tiny Pokémon, but his accumulated injuries reduced his speed to a middling pace, allowing the Pokémon to gain a substantial lead.

Eventually, the chase lead the two of them back into the crowd. Blue struggled to keep up with the little blue speed demon as she deftly weaved through the legs of the Pokémon in the crowd. He watched, impressed, as the little girl deftly jumped over an Ekans' tail, swiftly slid under a Tropius and effortlessly dodge past a group of sticky Silcoon.

Blue didn't have quite as much luck as it did. He was snarled at when he accidentally trod on the Ekans, had bananas thrown at him as slammed into the Tropius, and was slowed down even further as several Silcoons got stuck on him. Although he was impressed by the little Pokémon's nimbleness, he wished that the little thing would slow down.

"Aaiiee!" Then, as he was trying to remove the sticky cocoon Pokémon from his limbs, Blue heard the little girl utter a shrill cry. Blue hastily tore the last angry Silcoon off his leg and chased after the scream.

"I'm sorry!" Blue heard the girl scream as he ran out of the plaza into an isolated side road. He saw the little Pokémon lying on the ground, trembling in fear and trying to cover her face with her bulbous tail.

Looming over the girl was a larger Pokémon. It had a wide, bulgy yellow body and a long, snout – like nose. The Pokémon was watching the little girl menacingly with its two, squinted eyes. The trembling girl cried out in fear as her assailant reached out to grab her with a pudgy arm.

"Get away from her!" Blue shouted loudly as he forced himself in between the two, shoving away the Pokémon's groping arm. He stood in between the crying girl and the yellow Pokémon with his fists drawn, daring her assailant to come any closer.

"Hey now..." The Pokémon spoke in a nasally, drawling voice, "That little girl ran into me. Can't you see the bruise she left on my leg?"

He pointed at his brown – colored leg. True to his words, a small red bruise was present on his lower leg. Blue, however, just shook his head and continued to glare at the snouted Pokémon.

"And your point?" He shot back, "It's just a little girl, and it was an accident."

"She hurt me," The Pokémon replied menacingly, "What if it was a serious injury? What then? She'll have to repay me somehow..."

"It's too bad it wasn't," Blue retorted angrily, making the yellow Pokémon narrow his already – tiny eyes, "She apologized already, so how about you leave her alone?"

"Oh, and what makes you think you can decide that for me, Riolu?" He said in a threatening voice. He glanced at the wounds and bruises that covered Blue's body and sneered, "You look like you're about to fall apart at any moment..."

"Try me then," Blue dared as he pointed one of his fists directly at the Pokémon's long noise, "We'll see who falls apart first, me or you."

Blue hoped the bluff would work. His body was screaming in pain. His muscles and bones were aching, and it felt like his nerves were on fire. But, as he quickly glanced down at the little Pokémon hiding between his legs, he knew he couldn't just back off. There was no way he'd allow this creep to have his way!

The Pokémon stared warily at Blue's outstretched fist, then at his determined face. After deliberating for a second, he took a step back and said, "Tch... you're not worth the trouble..."

"Don't be mistaken that you've won though..." The yellow and brown Pokémon glanced down at the little girl hiding behind Blue's legs and smirked meaningfully, "I don't forget grudges easily..."

"Get out of here!" Blue shouted angrily, drawing his fist back as emphasis. The yellow – colored Pokémon just snorted at Blue contemptuously and slowly walked away, vanishing behind a building.

Relieved that he was gone, Blue relaxed his fists and dropped his arms. He looked down at the tiny Pokémon, who was trembling fearfully with her eyes shut tight. She had tightly wrapped her long black tail against his right leg for support. Blue leaned down and gently prodded her trembling head with a finger.

"Hey now, don't cry," Blue said in a gentle voice. The little girl timidly opened one of her eyes. She looked around them, still terrified. Blue patted her head comfortingly and smiled at her, "It's alright now. You don't have to be scared, I got rid of the bad guy."

Hesitantly, the little Pokémon slowly untangled her tail from Blue's leg and backed up a little. Blue bent down on to his knees and continued to comfort the scared little girl by patting her head.

"T – thank you mister..." She said quietly, giving Blue a small smile.

"It's nothing," Blue replied nonchalantly, grinning back, "Are you alright? Did the bad guy hurt you?"

She shook her tiny head, "No, but he was really, really scary looking..."

You don't have to worry about that anymore. Just forget about that gross looking guy now, alright? You'll feel better that way."

The little girl giggled when Blue insulted the Pokémon. She reached up with her long tail and wrapped it around his paw affectionately.

"So what's your name?" Blue asked as he gently lifted the girl up with his arm, letting her hang upside down by her tail. She giggled as she swung back and forth on his arm like a pendulum.

"My name's Azurill," Azurill said as she nimbly swung herself on top of Blue's paw. She gave him a big smile as she balanced delicately on top of his arm, "What's yours?"

"Well, everyone seems to be calling me Riolu lately," Blue remarked wryly as he lifted Azurill closer to his face, "But you can call me Blue, if you want."

"Blue?" Azurill giggled as she playfully jumped on to his shoulder, "That's a color, not a name, silly!"

"Heh, I know," Blue replied with a grin, "But it's just happens to be my name as well."

"Hee hee!" Azurill spun around on his shoulder, wagging her tail playfully, "Then I wanna be called Blue too! Since I'm also blue!"

"Haha, no way!" Blue replied loudly, pretending to be mad, "That's my name! Besides, you're more of a light blue anyway!"

Azurill puffed out her cheeks, pouting, "Then you're a dark blue!" She turned away in a huff and whacked Blue on the back of his head with her tail.

Blue grinned and poked the little Pokémon on the cheek playfully. He was glad that Azurill was no longer feeling scared, and happy to see her so cheerful. Although he was still a little concerned over what that creepy Pokémon had said, he figured that as long as Azurill was safe now, there wasn't anything to worry about.

He reached up and took the little blue Pokémon off his shoulder. But, right as he was about to put her down on the ground, he felt a sudden painful shock rush through his head. It was like a lightning bolt of pain shot shot up his spine and struck the base of his head. The agony in his skull forced him down to his knees, clutching his head as he trembled uncontrollably. He gasped in pain and shut his eyes as an all – too – familiar headache began to ravage his mind.

"Blue?" He heard Azurill's worried voice from somewhere in front of him, but by the time he managed to pull his head back up, his vision had already vanished. An inky blackness swirled in front of him, blotting out the bright, sunny plaza. Silence overwrote the noise and clamor of the crowd, and soon, Blue found himself kneeling in the midst of a dark and silent land.

'...this... not again...' Blue groaned in pain as he forced his eyes to open. A thousand drums were beating inside his head, pounding away at his skull. With great exertion, he staggered back on to his feet.

There was nothing around him. No buildings, no crowd, no Azurill. He was standing in the middle of darkness.

'I remember this...' Blue thought back to the beach, when he first met Fée, 'This... this is that strange phenomenon I felt on the beach...'

Then, he collapsed.

* * *

I bit my lip worriedly as I weaved my way through the enormous crowd of Pokémon. Everyone around was shouting wildly and cheering for something that was going on in the center, I was mildly interested about what kind of event was going on, I decided that finding Azurill was more important that satisfying my curiosity.

I wandered around at the outskirts of the crowd, hoping to spot Azurill's conspicuous tail sticking out of the horde of Pokémon, but to avail. There was just too many different Pokémon flooding the plaza, not to mention the sheer amount of dust that was being kicked up by all the movement was blocking my vision more than anything.

Guilt and worry flooded into me as I continued to circle around the crowd, desperately trying to find her. No matter which way I looked though, all I could see was dust and unfamiliar Pokémon. I looked up and saw a Buneary floating in the air, hanging on to a Drifloon. I wildly imagined myself doing the same thing, trying to find Azurill by looking down from the sky.

I shook my head, ridding myself of such fantasies. If I had time to imagine fanciful things, I could be using it to find her! I slapped myself on the cheeks and continued to search for the little blue Pokémon.

I wandered over to the other side of the plaza, the side that lead to the guild district. A massive cliff made of stone rose up from the ground at the edge of the plaza. In the center of the cliff was a large staircase that was carved directly into the cliff. I glanced up at the stairs briefly. At the very top, near the sky, I could just barely make out the pink tips of the tent that housed Wigglytuff's Guild.

I clutched the bag around my neck and stared nervously at the giant stone stairs. I remembered how I nervously walked up the steps yesterday, hoping, wishing that I would have enough courage to succeed. I smiled mockingly to myself, obviously, I didn't succeed.

But, I didn't feel depressed. Today was different. I held my bag with both of my paws and opened it again, letting the sun shine on my precious treasure.

"That's right," I said to no one in particular, "I'm different now... today, I'll walk up those steps bravely, and I'll ask... I'll ask them to accept me an apprentice..."

Blushing a little, I quickly glanced to my sides, embarrassed. Thankfully, no one was noticed me talking to a set of stairs. Sighing, I replaced the flap on my bag and resumed my search for Azurill.

As I walked down a road that lead away from the plaza, I noticed that less and less Pokémon were present. They must all be at that big event down at the main plaza, I thought. I felt a little relieved by the relative quietness of the road. Then, the silence was quickly shattered by a group of girls walking down opposite me. For no real reason, I hid into a side alley as they passed by.

"So, so, did you see the last match?" A Pikachu said, waving her heart shaped tail around eagerly.

"Oooh yes, I did!" Replied a Furret, who was practically wiggling with excitement, "Wasn't the victor super handsome?"

"I thought so too!" A Roselia added, "Especially the way he just nonchalantly walked out the ring afterwards. I felt faint when he walked past me, ooh!"

"Hm, hm, hm..." The Kirlia standing in between them smirked, "Well, luck's on your side girls, I just so happen to know that Pokémon!"

The other three gaped at her incredulously. The Pikachu recovered first and pointed an accusing finger at the white – dressed Pokémon.

"Don't just say that and not tell us the details!" She said, her red cheeks bristling with electricity, "Come on, what's he like?"

"Well, he was kinda cool, but he didn't really talk much."

The rest of the girls didn't seem to enjoy that answer and proceeded to grill the Kirlia for more information as they walked off.

I thought about what they were rambling about. I've never really cared too much about "cool" or "handsome" Pokémon. In fact, thinking back, I've never really had much contact with other Pokémon my age. I've always sequestered myself inside Mr. Mime's library or hung out with Azurill and Marill.

...though, I suppose Blue would count as a Pokémon my age...

The image of his profile floated up inside my head. I guess he was pretty cool, and I suppose you can call him handsome as well... I felt my face turn bright red as I realized what I was thinking about. I quickly shook my head, that wasn't what I meant!

Feeling even more awkward than before, I quickly dashed out of my hiding spot and continued my walk down the road. Jeez, why do they have to talk about things like that? I quickly quashed my previous thoughts and refocused myself on finding Azurill.

"Féeee!" Suddenly, something small and fast struck my back, almost sending me tumbling forward on to the ground. I quickly turned around and saw little Azurill clutching my hind legs.

"Azurill?!" I felt a surge of anger and worry rise inside of me when I saw her. I was just about to start scolding her about running away, but that desire quickly melted away when I saw her face.

"What happened Azurill? Why are you crying?" I quickly picked up the little Pokémon with my paws. Large tears were pouring down her face as she sobbed loudly at me, "Are you hurt? Please, tell me what happened!"

"Fée... Fée..." She cried out my name as she tightly wrapped her tail around my paw, "Fée, you need to help him! Please..."

"Azurill, it's okay, it's okay..." I held her close to my chest, hugging her tightly as she cried dejectedly into my ruff. I didn't know what happened, but I tried to console her as much as I could, "It's okay Azurill, I'm here..."

"W – we were just talking and jok – joking when he – when he...!" She tried to speak, but her words kept being interrupted by waves of hiccups. I gently patted her back, trying to ease her pain as she struggled to keep talking.

"H – he suddenly fell over and – and he's not moving anymore... just like – just like mom did...!" As soon as Azurill finished that sentence, a new wave of tears flowed out of her eyes. She sobbed even harder into my chest, drenching my fur with tears.

"Please, you have to help him! Please... Fée!"

I didn't know who she was talking about, or what even happened. But as I looked at how upset Azurill was, I knew the details didn't matter. There was someone in trouble, and I needed to go help.

"It's okay Azurill," I said as I put her back down on the ground. I gently cupped her cheeks between my paws, brushing away her tears, "I need you to take me to whoever this is, right now. Alright?"

Azurill gave me a teary nod and ran off toward the other side of the road. I adjusted the bag around my neck and ran after her.

* * *

A few moments of frantic running later, Azurill stopped. When I reached her, I covered my mouth in horror.

It was Blue. My friend was lying down at the side of the road, his was head propped up against the side of a building. The scars on his arms and legs were freshly bleeding, and his chest sported a large, angry looking bruise. Dried dirt caked his blue fur, staining it brown. His eyes were closed as if he was asleep.

"_B – BLUE!_" I screamed in horror as I saw his injured body. I rushed over and cradled his head with my paws, "Blue! Blue, please, wake up! Blue...!"

"I – I tried to help him as much as I c – could," Azurill said, sobbing beside me, "But he wouldn't wake up!"

I leaned my head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat. It was beating erratically, and his breathing was quiet, but ragged.

"F – Fée.." Azurill cried beside me as I let go of Blue's head. I fiercely ripped my bag off my neck, ignoring the tearing sound as I did so, and spilled its contents all over the ground. My treasure and all the berries I saved earlier came rolling out of the bag like marbles. It didn't matter, I had to do something!

I quickly picked out the small, dark blue Oran Berry from the rest. With a shaky paw, I held it over Blue's chest. With great effort, I squeezed the berry as hard as I could. It burst in my paws, spewing blue juice everywhere.

Throwing away the now drained Oran Berry, I scooped up as much Oran juice as I could and spread the dark blue liquid around his chest with my paws. To my great relief, Blue's breathing slowly calm down from its frenetic state as I continued to gently massage his chest. He was looking better, but he still wouldn't wake up.

I wiped the blue juice off my face and out of my eyes as I reached back to the pile of berries on the ground. I sifted through the colorful pile and selected another berry. This time, it was a plump, golden – colored Sitrus Berry.

Unlike the Oran Berry, the Sitrus had a thick, rough – textured skin that had to be peeled first before it could be eaten. I extended a claw from my paw to try and cut the skin, but it wasn't strong enough. My mind thought back to the claw I saw on the Persian's paw earlier, wishing it was mine right now. Shaking my head, I dismissed that thought and looked back the berry. With no other choice available, I did the only thing I could think of.

I bit into it. The rough, sandy surface scraped painfully against my mouth as I tore into the skin. After a few seconds of painful ripping, my teeth finally pierced through the thick skin. A burning, sour juice seeped out of the tiny hole I made, sending a tingling sensation rushing through my body. I ignored it as much as I could and continued to pull the berry's skin away.

After a few minutes of heated tearing and ripping, I was left with the semi – transparent, jelly – like insides of the Sitrus Berry. I gingerly scooped away a tiny piece of the goopy, sour berry. It jiggled awkwardly on my paw as it threatened to slide off and on to the ground.

"Okay, hold his mouth open, Azurill," I said in a hurried voice. Azurill nodded obediently and used her tail to gently push up his noise, exposing his mouth. I took the clear jelly and placed it on the tip of Blue's tongue. Then, I tilted his head backwards. The jelly easily slipped over his tongue and down his throat. I motioned for Azurill to close his mouth.

We watched with bated breath as the berry piece traveled through Blue's body. Azurill stood next to me, still crying softly. I gulped worriedly as I tried to hold back my own tears. I was scared. I didn't know if what I did helped or not. I thought back to the beach yesterday, where I helped resuscitate him with an Oran Berry. I desperately hoped in my mind that the same thing will happen again.

"Fée..." Azurill whimpered as she clung to me, frightened, "Will he be okay?"

Azurill was probably even more scared than I was. I don't know how she met Blue, or what occurred, but she saw him fall over and faint in his injured state. It must've been terrifying for the little girl. I picked her up and held her close to me, trying to console her. And myself at the same time.

Four, maybe five tense minutes passed before we saw any sign of movement from Blue. His right arm began to twitch slightly. At first, I thought I just imagined it, but when I saw his arm begin to move, I nearly dropped Azurill out of relief.

"A...u...ghhh" A pained moan came out of Blue's mouth as he began to stir. I felt as though a heavy weight was suddenly lifted off my back. Unable to hold them back any longer, warm tears began to spill out of my eyes.

"...Fée?" Blue said in a slurred, unfocused voice as he slowly returned to consciousness. He placed a paw against his chest as he slowly breathed in and out. Then, a strange look flitted by his face as felt the sticky juice against his chest, "What is this stuff?"

"Blue..." I quickly tried to wipe the tears off my face before he noticed that I was crying. Blue groaned again and sluggishly tried to push himself off the ground. But before he even got a single inch off the ground, Azurill suddenly leapt forward and tackled him in the chest, knocking the air out of his lungs and sending him back on to the ground.

"You're alright!" Azurill shouted as she wrapped her tail around his chest. Her face was getting stained a dark blue from all the Oran Berry juice left on his chest, but she didn't care. She just kept rubbing her face against his fur joyfully.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Blue winced as the little Pokémon bumped against his bruise, "Easy there, Azurill! You're – ow! – getting all this sticky gunk over your face!"

"I don't care!" She cried out happily, giving Blue a big, sticky smile, "You're okay! You're okay!"

Azurill laughed happily as she hugged Blue. I couldn't help but smile as well, watching Blue try in vain to pull the little Pokémon off him.

"Fée, a little help?" He looked at me imploringly. I sniffed and walked over beside him, but I didn't try to pull Azurill off. Instead, I also grabbed on to Blue's chest and hugged him tightly.

"Jeez, not you too..." He sighed as he raised up his arms in defeat.

Azurill and I shared a smile as we hugged him even harder. Answers can come later, I thought. What's important now is that Blue's okay, and that we're now all back together again. I was aware of the strange looks that the passerby was giving us, but I didn't care. I just held on to my friend.


	10. Someone, anyone

**• ****  
Chapter 10:**

**"Someone... anyone..."  
**

I have no idea how long we stayed there, lying on the ground, hugging tightly onto Blue. It could've been five minutes, ten even, but I'm not really sure. Some passerby had walked past, giving us curious, maybe even amused, glances, but it didn't matter to me. I just continued to cling onto Blue as if he'll disappear again if I let go.

I let my head rest against his warm chest, feeling it rise and fall as he breathed. It was comforting to me. All the panic and worry, all the exhaustion and fear inside of me was being drained away just by being with him. I let out a loud yawn and closed my eyes. Maybe not all of my exhaustion had vanished just yet.

Then, right before I fell asleep, a sharp puff of wind blew into one of my ears. My eyes shot wide open at the strange, tingling sensation on top of my head. Yelping, I leapt off Blue's body and frantically patted my ears. As I tried to get rid of the ticklish feeling, I saw Blue and Azurill silently tittering away at me.

"Sorry Fée," Blue apologized when I shot him an angry look, "You just looked so cozy and snug there that I wanted to play a little prank on you."

I huffed and looked away, pretending to look more offended than I actually was. It made me a little gleeful when I saw the worried look on Blue's face.

"Fée! How come you never told me you knew Blue?" I turned around and saw Azurill giving me an accusatory look, "I didn't know you two were friends already!"

I shook my head, "I'm just as surprised as you are, Azurill," I said as I sat down, "I didn't know you knew this guy as well."

"'This guy?'" Blue glanced at me curiously. I ignored him.

"I just met him today!" Azurill said cheerfully, "I was walking around the big crowd, trying to get a good look at what's going on, and then he suddenly stepped on me!"

"What?!" I gave an aghast look at Blue, who quickly shook his head and waved his arms around frantically.

"And then he tripped and fell onto the ground!" Azurill continued, completely unperturbed. I glanced over to Blue again. Dirt was caked around the side of his bruised – looking snout. He probably noticed my stare, since he began to sheepishly wipe away the dirt from his nose.

I turned back to Azurill, "So what happened next? Did either of you get hurt?"

Azurill shook her head and said, "No, I didn't get hurt at all. I lied, he actually only tripped over my tail!" She said shamelessly, sticking her tongue out. I sighed in relief and reached over to pick Azurill up. She happily jumped into my paws and settled herself underneath my ruff.

"But then, something scary happened," She said, her voice losing some of the gaiety from before, "After I ran away from Blue and out of the crowd, I bumped into a scary Pokémon." She poked her head out from under my ruff. I noticed that her face wasn't smiling anymore.

"Who was it?" I asked, gently patting her head. Azurill just shook her head in response.

"I dunno," She looked over to Blue, who had adopted a serious look on his face, "I've never met that Pokémon before."

"Blue?" I addressed my friend, who looked like he knew something about what happened.

Blue nodded and began to recount the events, "It's as Azurill said. She ran away from me after I accidentally tripped over her tail." He gestured over to Azurill, who ducked under my ruff with a small giggle, "I was afraid that I had hurt her, so I chased after her into the crowd." He grimaced and said with a strained voice, "It... wasn't easy."

He crossed his arms and glanced down at his legs. I noticed that the scars from the Kabuto attack from yesterday still haven't fully healed yet. In fact, they looked even worse than before. It would've been hard for him to chase after Azurill, in a crowd no less, with an injured leg like that. Suddenly, I felt a pang of guilt inside me. It was my fault that he got hurt, after all...

"Fée, are you blaming yourself again?" I quickly looked up at Blue. Did he read my mind? He smirked when he saw the surprise etched on my face, "Bingo."

"B – but, your leg got hurt because of m –," I tried to say, but he just held up a hand in front of my face, interrupting me.

"I already told you," He said, grinning, "It doesn't hurt that much, really." To emphasize his point, he slapped his leg with his paw. Unfortunately, his bravado wasn't enough to mask the pain. He winced and coughed a few times before forcing himself to give me a thumbs up and a smile. I sighed.

He's such an idiot. You don't have to pretend to be strong like that, Blue.

"Blue..."

"I'm telling you, I'm fine. No need to worry." He said, closing the lid on the discussion.

I just shook my head. I made a mental note to collect more Oran Berries later. At this rate, he'll be completely covered in sticky Oran Berry juice before his entire body's healed. The thought of Blue walking around, completely covered from head to toe in blue goop made me giggle a bit.

"So what happened after you chased Azurill through the crowd?" I asked, "Did you meet that scary Pokémon she talked about?"

Blue nodded solemnly, "Yeah. I did." He glanced at my ruff, where Azurill was hiding under. She was quavering a little, so I wrapped my paws around her comfortingly. Blue began to trace a picture in the road with his paw. I watched as he sketched out a strange – looking Pokémon with a pudgy body and a long, trailing nose.

"Is this... a Drowzee?" I said, recognizing the Pokémon's long, snout.

"You know this guy?" Blue questioned, staring curiously at me. I quickly shook my head and explained.

"I once read a book about Pokémon with psychic powers before," I jabbed a paw at the sketch on the ground, "I remember seeing this Pokémon in the book. They're called Drowzee, and they're known to have powerful hypnotic abilities."

"Hypnotic abilities?"

I nodded, "Yeah. Hold on, let me see if I can remember more," I scrunched up my face, trying to recall the details of the book, "Um... I think it means Drowzee have the ability to put Pokémon to sleep with their powers..."

"That's it?" Blue said, rolling his eyes, "Then I really should've just beat him up when I had the chance."

"Beat him up?!" I goggled at Blue, startled by what he just said, "What do you mean beat him up?Is that why you have that big bruise on your chest? Were you in a fight?"

"Err... heh," Blue scratched his head sheepishly while I glared suspiciously at him, "Well, you see..."

"Blue saved me from that big, ugly Drowzee!" Azurill retorted, popping her face out of my ruff, "Don't be mad at him, Fée! He didn't do anything bad!"

"That's not the point, Azurill," I replied, still staring at Blue, "Tell me what happened with that Drowzee."

Blue shrugged and said, "It's like Azurill said, I saved her from the Drowzee." I raised an eyebrow, unsatisfied with that answer. Blue sighed and explained further, "When I finally got out of the crowd, I saw Azurill and that creep – Drowzee – standing over her. I didn't know what happened between the two, but whatever it was, it didn't seem like anything good was going to come out of it."

"So I ran in between them, trying to keep Drowzee away from Azurill."

"And that's when you got hurt?" I said, eying his bruise warily. He shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest, blocking my view.

"Nah, the Drowzee didn't attack me," He replied, "I threatened to fight him if he didn't leave immediately. I managed to scare him away with that," He lifted a fist triumphantly, "See? I didn't need to throw a punch at all."

I remained unconvinced, my eyes narrowing at his story. If he really didn't fight the Drowzee, then how did he end up on the side of the road, unconscious? His story didn't add up.

"So what happened after that?" I said, "You shooed away the Drowzee and then?"

"Err..." Blue lowered his fist and looked surprised. He fell silent and turned away from me, scratching his head.

"Blue?"

He didn't respond immediately, but instead, he closed his eyes. He looked like he was thinking deeply about something. I glanced down worriedly at Azurill, who just gave me a puzzled glance in response. After a moment of silence, he finally reopened his eyes and stared at me. But his eyes weren't directed to me, but rather, at Azurill.

"After I scared away Drowzee," He said in a low, serious voice, "I became acquainted with Azurill."

"Yeah, we chatted and joked a bit!" Azurill concurred, smiling back at Blue. But, Blue wasn't making his usual grin, but instead, he seemed to be frowning a bit.

"Yeah, we joked around a bit. But then, when I went and picked up Azurill, something happened," Blue raised up his right paw up and tapped the side of his head, "I suddenly felt a horrible pain inside my head. Then, the entire world blacked out."

I looked at him, confused for a second. Then, I gasped. I remembered Blue describing something extremely similar happening to him when he first met me on the beach yesterday. He described how he got a headache, then how the world around him suddenly vanished. Then, he fainted.

Blue nodded solemnly at me. The pieces were beginning to come together now. When he touched Azurill, he must've experienced the same thing as when he first met me. I looked down at Azurill, who looked confused at what we were talking about. When Blue fainted, the sight of him collapsing must've terrified her. No wonder she was crying so hard when she found me. I gently rubbed Azurill's head, she must've been really scared. I know I was.

"So... that means," I said in a quiet voice, "Did you... did you see something?"

Blue didn't immediately respond. Instead, he closed his eyes and looked like he was thinking hard about my question. After another moment of silence, he frowned and shrugged.

"I didn't see anything," he stated bluntly, "everything was all black and murky. I couldn't make out anything at all."

I tilted my head in confusion, "But... you said yesterday that you clearly saw what happened to me," I remembered his startlingly accurate description of the beach, "How come it's different this time?"

Blue just shrugged and tapped his head, "I wish I knew the answers to that," He frowned again, "Actually, I wish I knew why this happens in the first place. Fée, have you ever read any books about headaches and blackouts?"

I shook my head. I've read books about blackouts and headaches before, but those books only described mundane things like accidentally hitting your head too hard or oversleeping for too long. Nothing I've read has ever talked about suddenly losing your vision and fainting afterward from a painful headache by just touching somebody.

"I see," Blue shook his head and shrugged, "well, I guess it can't be helped," he stretched out his arms and legs and looked up at the sky.

"Actually, now that I think about it," Blue said, staring idly at the clouds overhead, "There was something odd during my blank vision."

"What was it?"

"I told you, I didn't see anything at all, right?"

"Yeah, you did."

"But, even though I was standing there in the complete darkness, I could hear voices around me. Two voices."

"Did you recognize them?"

Blue shook his head, "No. Even if I could, my headache was so painful that I couldn't really focus anyway."

"Then, what did you hear?"

He paused. He mulled over the question for a moment before answering.

"I couldn't really understand what the voices were saying," Blue said, "But there was one word I managed to make out through my pounding headache."

"What was it?"

"I heard someone screaming help."

* * *

Xatu rushed through the crowd, his eyes darting left and right frantically. It's been over half an hour since he last saw the Riolu. From what he had heard, the Riolu had won his first match during the event, and for that, he was grateful. However, the second match involving the Riolu had to be passed over since the Riolu was absent.

When he heard the floating Buneary announce that, he felt as though his wings had been clipped whilst he was flying. Thankfully, it only meant that the Riolu would have to skip a match and that he wasn't disqualified, but it still made a terrifying shiver go down his spine. He thought back to the Persian and the horde of Meowth.

Why, oh why did he had to go and make that wager? Why did he have to go and dig himself into such a deep hole? He looked down at the small, golden coin in his wing and gulped. He didn't have a choice. For the sake of his own livelihood, he had to make that wager. There was no other way. He had to win the gamble.

And for that, he needed to find that Riolu. At first, he didn't know what to think about the little blue Pokémon. It was a little startling to find a Riolu wandering around the streets of Treasure Town, the gigantic immigration wave notwithstanding. Riolu were known to be isolationist and rather self – centered, preferring to stay amongst their own kind and not associate with the rest of the world. Therefore, he was incredibly surprised to find one in the crowd.

He thought he could stick to his usual tactics, say some bogus phrases about mystical charms and maybe namedrop his ancestors a bit to fool the Riolu. An easy catch, Xatu believed, and he could make some quick money from him. But he didn't expect the Riolu to be so clueless about everything. He didn't even know what money was, nor could he read!

Xatu was both flabbergasted and disappointed. But he quickly thought of a plan. Riolu, despite their negative image, were known to be skilled fighters. And it just so happens that one of the big adventuring guilds in the town was holding some sort of brutish combat show in the plaza. Xatu believed that if he entered this Pokémon into the event, he could go to Persian and strike a wager.

Luckily for him, the Riolu was interested in his wares. It was easy for Xatu to offer the Riolu a proposition. A few victories in the arena, and the Riolu gets what he wants. Simple, right? At least, that was what he thought.

He heard that the first match that the Riolu participated in was a hard – fought battle, with both sides taking severe damage in the process. At that point, Xatu became worried. It no longer felt like a foolproof plan, and only now did he realize the shortcomings of his cunning strategy to get out of debt. It all relied on the Riolu to win. To win, and win and win.

But what if the Riolu lost? What then? He would be in deep trouble, both financially and physically. He had gambled on the Riolu would be a skilled fighter, a tier above the rest. Perhaps the money signs in his eyes blinded him from seeing all sides of the situation. He had imagined a straight victory by the Riolu. After all, Riolu were strong, right?

Xatu grimaced. If only he had the same capabilities as his ancestors. If he had the power to see like they did, then possibly, he would've been able to predict this outcome. No, if he had the power to see, then he wouldn't even be in this situation in the first place.

Xatu thought back to the Persian. The Persian seemed to know about his shortcomings. The way the cat kept sarcastically referring to him as 'prophet' both frustrated and irritated him to no end. It wasn't his fault that he couldn't see, it wasn't his fault.

Alas, all the complaining in the world wouldn't be able to fix his problems, nor fill his purse. Xatu broke out of the crowd and looked around the plaza for the Riolu, hoping to find him before another battle comes and goes.

* * *

"Wow! This is delicious! Fée, what is this?!"

I watched as Blue's eyes sparkled gleefully as he took another bite out of the slice of apple pie. Smiling, I pulled out another slice of pie and put it in front of him. He eagerly picked it up with his other paw and gave me a crumbly grin.

"It's just an apple pie," I said matter – of – factly, "You've never had an apple pie before?"

Blue shook his head, scattering crumbs everywhere. He gleefully devoured the first pie in one bite and immediately started on the second. I shook my head at his childishness. It was strange seeing Blue so happy about something so simple. I've always imagined him to be strong and dignified, but that idea shattered when I saw him choke from stuffing too much pie into his mouth.

A while had passed since we wrapped up our discussion about Blue's strange vision. At that time, I didn't know what to think about it. I wanted to take Blue over to somewhere quieter and maybe get someone to properly look over his injuries. But Blue just shrugged off my suggestions and said that all he needed was some food and some rest, and he'll be just fine.

I wasn't convinced though, but I decided that it probably would be better for him to stay here and rest instead of forcing him to move across town when there's so many Pokémon moving around.

"Fée..." I looked down and saw Azurill nudging my paw with her tail. She was staring at me imploringly, "Can I have one of these?"

She pointed at the small white box that I was holding. Inside the box were the leftovers from the meal we had earlier with Sunflora and Loudred. I saved some apple pie and some of the sweet berry slices that Sunflora made to share with Blue later.

"Sure, go ahead," I said, offering the box to Azurill. She cheered gleefully and picked out several colorful berry slices.

I gave her a little pat on the head before returning to my task. I scooped up several fallen berries on the ground and dusted them off before putting them back inside my bag. Speaking of my bag, I mentally apologized as I stared forlornly at its current state. I had hastily torn it off my neck when I found Blue, and it resulted in the bag's straps being torn into two pieces, again, as well as the body now sporting a rather large tear down the side.

I sighed as I prodded the hole on the bag. I saw my precious treasure peeking through the hole, as if it was staring at me. I gently nudged it deeper into the bag. The last thing I want now is for it to roll out and when we walk through town. Especially after all the trouble we went through to get it back.

"Hold on Azurill, that one's mine!" I raised up my head to see Blue and Azurill fighting over the last slice of pie in the box.

"No way! You already ate three whole slices!"

"I'm bigger, so I need to eat more!"

"You're selfish!"

They both pulled at the pie. Eventually, the poor pie slice couldn't handle the pressure and was torn into two pieces. Jam and pie crust splattered all over the ground as Blue and Azurill sat in a stunned silence, holding their halves of the pie while jam dripped down their faces.

"This seems like a good compromise," I could barely hold back my laughter as I walked toward them, "You both now get half of the pie. Plus some extra splattered all over you two."

Blue and Azurill glared at each other for a second before suddenly breaking out in mirthful laughter. I joined in the laughter, unable to hold back my own.

I sat down next to Azurill and patted her on the head. She gave me a jam – covered smile and wrapped her tail affectionately around my paw.

"Did you have fun today, Azurill?" I asked, shaking her tail up and down.

"Yep!" She said cheerfully, "I'm having so much fun right now! I met all sorts of new Pokémon, I found a new friend," She gestured to Blue, who was already half – way done with his pie, "and I got to run around all over town!"

"Marill usually never lets me go out on my own," She continued, sounding a little less cheerful, "Usually, he just makes me stay at home while he goes out and does whatever he does outside."

Azurill tightened her grip on my paw, "That's no fun. I hate staying at home and doing nothing all day. I wanna go out and play, and have adventures like today!"

"Azurill..." I said, giving her a worried look.

"I wish he would stop being so clingy!" She said, taking a big bite out of her pie, "I think I'd like him more if he would just stop being so afraid of everything all the time."

"You mean Marill?" I asked.

She nodded, "Yep, Marill," She took another bite out of her pie before continuing, "He's always going on and on about how dangerous it is outside, or how scared he is about me getting hurt. But I'm not afraid!"

Her little head drooped down, "I wish he would understand," She looked at me with a small frown on her face, "I'm not a child anymore, you know? I don't want him to always be so worried about me. He's always overdoing it and tiring himself out all the time. I hate that."

"Azurill, I'm sure your brother does that because he cares about you. He just wants you to be safe."

"I know..." She said quietly, "I love him, you know? I know how much he cares about me. I wish I could grow up faster so he wouldn't be so worried all the time."

I glanced over to Blue, who was silently listening in on our conversation. He walked over to Azurill and gently placed a paw on her head.

"Azurill," I said in a calm voice, "The reason why he works so hard is so you don't have to grow up so fast. He wants you to have fun, and enjoy yourself some more."

"He does?"

"That's right," I smiled at her, "If it wasn't for Marill, you wouldn't be able to have as much fun as you have now."

"So don't be so hard on your brother, alright?"

"Okay, Fée," She said, untangling herself from my paw. She pointed at the sky with her tail and announced loudly, "I still wanna grow up though! I wanna be taller and stronger than Blue is!

She pointed her tail at Blue, who grinned and placed his paw against it.

"And," She continued, "I wanna go out of Treasure Town! I wanna go and explore the world! I bet you that there's probably hundreds, no, more than hundreds of places out there that's super fun to visit!"

I smiled at her. I was just about to reply to her boast when suddenly, a new voice rang out from behind us.

"Well, it seems like you're all having a lot of fun,"

Sunflora and Loudred were standing on the road behind us with big smiles plastered on their faces.

"Sunflora! Loudred!" I stood up and greeted my new friends happily, "It's nice to see you two again!"

"Has it really been that long?" Loudred mused, rubbing his chin. He stared at my two jam – covered companions and remarked, "So is he the friend you were talking about back then?"

"Yep!" I trotted over to Blue and nudged him playfully with my paw, "This is my friend, Blue!"

"'Blue?'" Loudred repeated in a puzzled voice, "... I didn't know that was actually his name..."

Sunflora slapped Loudred over the head hard with her leaf, making him cry out in surprise.

"Ow! What the heck Sunflora?"

"Oh my gosh! Why must you always be so rude?" She chided. She turned to Blue and bowed apologetically, "I'm so sorry about my companion's rudeness, eek!"

"It's not a big deal," Blue said, waving off her apology, "Don't worry about it."

"Ooh, he's so cool!" Sunflora said gleefully, "I've never met a Riolu before, so this is a new experience for me! Eek!"

"Thanks...?" Blue said, looking a little confused and maybe a little taken aback by how enthusiastic Sunflora was.

I giggled at Blue's apprehension and decided to throw him a bone. I nudged Sunflora and asked, "So did you find Azurill's brother?"

"Oh, yes!" She said, clapping her leaves together as if she just remembered, "Marill, where are you? Come on ou –!"

Before she even finished her sentence, a sudden blue blur came zooming out from behind Loudred toward Azurill. Blue quickly stood up, his leftover pie splattering on the ground as he took a fighting stance, his eyes steely.

"Oh, Azurill! Azurill! Where have you been? I was so worried about you!"

Blue stared at me for a second, evidently confused. I shook my head and just pointed at Azurill.

"Gah! Brother, stop hugging me, you're suffocating me! Ew! You're crying all over me, let me go!"

"I'm so sorry Azurill! I'm such an awful brother to you, I'm so sorry! I ran all over town, looking for you, but there was just too many Pokémon, and I couldn't find you anywhere! Please forgive me, Azurill!"

I couldn't help but smile at the scene. Azurill's brother, Marill had pulled her into a big, heartwarming hug. He was crying huge tears while he clung tightly onto her, despite Azurill's protests and struggling.

"Aww, isn't that just adorable?" Sunflora squealed happily, "A family reunion always feels so nice, doesn't it Loudred?"

"I dunno, it looks more like a fight to me than a reunion – ow!"

I laughed as Sunflora slapped Loudred over the head again.

"Gyeeh!" Azurill squealed as she managed to escape Marill's clutches. She ran behind Blue and peeked out from behind his legs, sticking her tongue out at her brother.

"Are you the one who found Azurill?" Marill said in a surprised voice, as if he just noticed Blue's presence, "Thank you, thank you so much! I don't know how I can repay you for your troubles."

Blue looked uncomfortable at the sight of Marill practically prostrating in front of him. He looked over to me with an expression that practically screamed 'help me!' I giggled at his desperation and walked over to Marill and tapped him on the back. He spun around and looked at me in surprise.

"Fée? You're here too?" He sounded so genuinely surprised that I almost laughed out loud in front of him.

"Yes, Marill, I'm here too," I said, barely holding back my mirth, "How are you?"

"I'm fine...!" He said, looking decidedly not – fine, "I've just been running all over town looking for my sister all day. I was so scared when she suddenly grabbed onto that Drifblim. I mean, have you ever seen a Drifblim before? They're massive! Then she got carried away by that balloon – I mean Drifblim – and I couldn't see her anymore! I felt like I was going to faint on the spot!"

I shook my head, trying to process the sheer tidal wave of words that Marill was throwing at me. I glanced over to Azurill in Blue's paws, who just gave me an amused look and tittered silently as I tried to brave her brother's worries.

"...and then I ran into a crowd of Meowth and Persian, and I thought they were gonna rob me!"

I turned toward Loudred and Sunflora. Loudred shrugged while Sunflora seemed like she was listening intently to Marill's tale of woe.

"To cut a long story short," Loudred said in a loud, commanding voice, "We found Marill running around the guild district, frantically writing all sorts of requests for someone to find his dear sister."

"It's true!" Sunflora said when I glanced over to her for confirmation, "Marill was practically inconsolable, eek! He was just running all over the place, begging for someone to help him! He even had a bag of Poké that he was shaking around!"

"Marill, you didn't!" Azurill yelled, glaring angrily at him, blushing. Marill ashamedly fiddled around with his tail, staring intently at his feet.

"Well, thankfully we found him before he blew his entire life's savings away," Loudred remarked, patting Marill playfully on the back, "You have a great brother, Azurill. Hahaha!"

"Mmhh..." Marill mumbled nervously as the big blue Pokémon beside him roared with laughter. Azurill blushed furiously while Blue just stared with confusion and amusement on his face.

"That's not a bad thing, Marill," I said, smiling at him, "Loudred's right. You were being a good brother."

Marill looked at me and gave me a small smile, "Thanks Fée, I really appreciate it." He sighed and straightened up. He looked over at Blue and gave him a nod. Blue seemed to understand what he meant, and put Azurill down on the ground.

"Azurill, I'm sorry for overreacting like that," Marill said softly at Azurill, "But you have to understand. You're my younger sister, my family. I can't help it if I get worried when you're gone."

"But you didn't have to go around begging for help!" Azurill shouted back, "I was fine the entire day, you know? I didn't need you to go around and try and pay people to find me!"

I gave Blue a worried glance. The incident with the Drowzee resurfaced in my mind. But Blue just shook his head and remained silent.

"Azurill, I know you want to go out and play," Marill held Azurill's tail and patted it, "There would be nothing I'd like more than to let you go out and romp around with your friends. But... I'm scared, Azurill. You're my... you're my only family now, and I don't want to lose you too. That's why I don't want to let you out of my sight if possible."

"I'm sorry if I'm always so... so panicky. I know I'm always sheltering you, preventing you from going out and having fun all the time, but I just can't help it. You're still so young... and you know mom wouldn't want you to be hurt..."

"Don't talk about mom!" Azurill shouted in an unexpectedly harsh voice, making me, and everyone else, jump with shock. She smacked Marill's paws away from her tail and send him tumbling on the ground. Azurill leapt away from him, snarling.

"Azurill...!" Marill tried to reach toward Azurill, his voice cracking and sounding hurt, "Azurill please, I didn't mean to –"

"You're always trying to be like mom!" Azurill screamed, tears were beginning to well up in her eyes, "You're not mom, Marill! You're not!"

Suddenly, she turned her back on Marill and began to run. Blue reached out and tried to grab onto her tail, but she slipped past his paws and ran away.

"Azurill!" I shouted out in shock, "Azurill come back!"

"I'll catch her," Blue nodded at Sunflora and Loudred and the three of them took off running after the little girl. I glanced nervously at Marill, who looked as though someone had just poured an entire bucket of iced water over him.

"Marill... are you alright?" I said, worried. Tears suddenly started rolling down his face as he tried to pull himself back up. He covered his eyes with his paws, trying to staunch the flow of tears.

"I – I did something stupid... I completely forgot..."

"Marill, calm down..." I tried to comfort him, but he continued to sob.

"I... Azurill... she was always closer to mom than I was," He said, choking a little, "When mom left us, she... Azurill was devastated..."

"When we moved to Treasure Town, I had hoped that Azurill would eventually get over mom, but I guess she never could let go. I've tried so long, so hard to be a good brother, but... I guess I'm just terrible. Terrible at being a brother or a replacement for her mother."

He stared at Azurill's half – eaten pie on the ground and said bitterly, "I guess I never could replace mom in her eyes. I bet... she hates me even more now..."

"Marill..."

I just didn't know what to say. I've always known that Azurill and Marill lived alone, but that was the norm in Treasure Town. Many Pokémon moved to Treasure Town to seek out new lives and forget their past, and I've always assume that that was why Marill and Azurill lived here. But I never imagined that this was the reason.

I picked up my bag with my mouth. I patted Marill on the back to get his attention.

"Marill, let's go," I said, my voice muffled by the straps in my mouth.

"Go? Go where?" He said, confused.

"Isn't it obvious? We're going to find Azurill and talk to her."

"No... no, no, I don't think that's a good idea," Marill said, looking despondent, "I... I don't think she wants to see me anymore, not after that."

"That's not true!" I replied, giving him a confident look, "Azurill doesn't hate you, Marill. She never did, and you know that."

"So don't say that you're a terrible brother, Marill. You were worried about her, weren't you? Loudred said you were running around the guilds, begging for help."

"She hated that, didn't you hear her yell?"

I shook my head, "She was just embarrassed, that's all. I'm sure the appreciates how hard you tried to find her. Even if it was a little over the top."

"Fée..."

I gave him another pat on the back and smiled, "Now come on, let's go find your sister and apologize to her."

He sniffled and wiped his eyes, giving me a strange sense of déjà vu. He stood up and nodded, "Thank you, Fée. Azurill's lucky to have a friend like you."

"Aren't we friends as well?" I remarked, nudging him playfully. He blushed and quickly waved his arms around.

"Y – yeah, we're friends too, sorry, I forgot."

I giggled and ran off, leaving Marill behind. I turned around and shouted at him.

"Come on, let's go!"

* * *

Azurill sat down on the ground, sighing to herself. She knew that what she did was childish and stupid, but she couldn't help it. When she heard that he had been looking for her all day, she secretly felt a little happy, even though she pretended to be annoyed. But that all changed when Loudred brought up the fact that Marill tried to spend money to find her.

Azurill knew that Marill worked hard to support the both of them, and sometimes, they had to live through hard times because of bad luck. But she didn't complain, and in fact, she secretly respected her brother for working so hard all the time. For her, but never for himself.

A small flame of anger grew inside of her. Marill was so stupid. Ever since mom vanished, Marill never seemed to slow down and take a rest. Azurill recalled the morning, when she somehow managed to convince him to go outside with her and check out the commotion. But no matter how much Azurill tried to point out how interesting and exciting everything was, her brother would always fret and worry about Azurill getting hurt. It made her sad and frustrated that her brother just couldn't calm down and enjoy the atmosphere.

Eventually, she just couldn't take it anymore and saw a big, floating balloon – like Pokémon in the air. She decided that, if Marill was going to keep worrying, then she might as well make it exciting. The next thing Azurill knew, she was floating high, high up in the sky. She couldn't see Marill anymore, and she was scared of falling. Thankfully, the Pokémon she hitched a ride with was kind and understanding, and let her down somewhere else in town.

Of course, she was now alone and scared. It pained her to admit that, without her brother around, she was a little frightened of everything. The kind Drifblim had floated away, and it seemed like everything around her was foreign and scary. Luckily for her, she managed to spot a familiar face eventually.

"Hey, isn't that Fée?"

"It is! Fée! Hello Fée!"

She recognized the brown furred Pokémon. The little Eevee that lived close to them, even though Azurill had never visited her home before. Azurill felt relieved that she found a familiar, friendly face, and immediately attached herself onto the Eevee.

Since then, everything became a crazy blur. Azurill met new friends, Sunflora and Loudred. She got separated from Fée and accidentally tripped another new friend, Blue. She was scared by Drowzee, but her cool new friend Blue saved her.

It was so strange, and everything felt so new. It was an adventure that she'd never been on before. It was fun, exciting, and even a little scary. But it was such a fresh new experience.

But then, everything stopped when she reunited with Marill again. She knew that Marill was probably worried and afraid about her. Azurill felt a little guilty when he hugged her so happily. He didn't blame her, and instead kept calling himself an awful brother. That made Azurill mad. It wasn't his fault that she went missing, it was hers.

And then he said that he tried to beg someone to help him find her. With his hard earned money.

Azurill felt sick. She felt awful that Marill had to go to such lengths to try and find her. She never wanted him to do that. She only wanted to scare him a bit, but for him to sacrifice something like that for her, it just made her feel guilty. Then, he had to remind her about mom...

Azurill felt tears beginning to well up in her eyes. Why did he have to bring up mom? She knew that Marill was trying to take care of her as much as he could, to do what mom would've done if she was still around. It's already been a few years, but she still just couldn't get over it.

"U...u..." She couldn't stop the tears anymore. Warm droplets of water came pouring out of her eyes as she tried to stem the flow with her tail. But it wouldn't stop. Marill... Mom...

She sat on the ground in her pitiable state, sobbing, crying alone. She didn't even know where she was anymore, but she continued to cry.

"Well... what do you know? No bodyguard this time, little girl...?

Startled, Azurill quickly turned around. But she couldn't see anything, as a large hand suddenly exploded into her view, grabbing tightly onto her face and roughly yanking her off the ground.

"G – gaah!" She tried to scream for help, but the stranger's hand was muffling her mouth. She tried to bite him, but her tiny teeth could only barely tickle his palm.

"You never should've left that Riolu's side, little girl..." She froze. She recognized that slow, drawling voice, "Hm hm hm... I thought I had to give up on you when that blasted Riolu appeared... but look at you now, walking right into me like a Farfetch'd into a boiling pot."

Her captor shifted his grip on Azurill. Suddenly, she could breath. Taking a deep breath, Azurill shouted as loud as she could.

_"HEEEEEEELP!"_

Stars erupted in her eyes as the Drowzee violently slammed a fist on her head, shutting her up.

"Don't do that, brat," He said furiously as he readjusted his grip again to cover up her mouth, "Or else worse punishment will come to you..."

Azurill was terrified. She begged for someone... anyone... to have heard her plea. Unfortunately, no one came, making the Drowzee chuckle darkly.

"What a shame... your only hope, dashed..."

He shifted his hand so that Azurill's eyes would be freed, but still kept her mouth muffled.

"Take a good look, little girl..." Drowzee said with a perverse glee as he placed his other hand on top of Azurill's head, "For this will be the last time you'll ever see Treasure Town again, hm hm hm..."

She didn't even get to see anything. Her vision was too blurred by tears.


	11. Just help me find her!

**• ****  
Chapter 11:**

**"Just help me find her!"**

Blue panted heavily as he stopped in front of the Founder's Fountain. Grunting in exertion, he threw his arm over the side of the fountain, and leaned his tired body against the cool stone. His right leg was throbbing agonizingly, screaming angrily at him for not giving it any rest. Grimacing, he slapped himself with his paw, trying to keep his mind off the pain.

There were more important things at stake here, he thought. It was something that was worth more than just a leg or two!

As if it was listening to his thoughts, the pain in his leg slowly receded. Sighing in relief, Blue let his body slide down the side of the fountain until he was sitting on the ground. He buried his face in his paws, trying to calm down his wildly beating heart. He felt a strange wetness from his paws as they touched his face. He glanced at his paws, and realized that one of them was soaked with water.

A sudden thought raced through his head. Without any warning, he hastily pulled himself back up and turned around. He leaned over the edge of the fountain, staring at the pool of water inside Without any reservations, he suddenly vaulted over the fountain wall and dived into the water. When his body entered the water, he gasped in shock. It felt like millions of icy needles were jabbing into him as he submerged himself in the fountain pool.

He grit his teeth and endured the freezing cold water. Taking a deep breath, he submerged his head under the surface.

He scanned the interior of the fountain pool. He had hoped to find Azurill sitting in the corner, waiting for him to pick her up. To his dismay, all that he could see was just piles and piles of discarded coins. He couldn't fathom as to why there was so much Poké just lying unclaimed inside the fountain, but he quickly dismissed his curiosity and resurfaced for air.

He waded over to the side of the fountain and spat out the fountain water that had seeped into his mouth. The Riolu angrily slammed his fist against the stone wall, venting his frustration against the fountain. He glared at his injured leg through the wavy surface of the water. If only he wasn't injured, then he could've easily caught up with Azurill and stopped her from running away.

But no, thanks to his aching leg, he could only watch as the little girl vanished into the crowd before his very eyes. He winced as his leg suddenly spasmed painfully as if in response to his frustration.

As he floated in the water, a certain memory surfaced up inside of his mind. That vision he had... didn't he hear somebody scream the word 'help?' What if that voice belonged to Azurill? And if it was Azurill, what could've happened to her to make her scream? What if that Drowzee found her again? He wasn't by her side this time, he can't protect her if she runs into that dangerous Pokémon!

His heart began to beat faster and faster as the fear inside of him grew. He desperately tried to recall as much as could about the blank vision. He hoped that he could break through the dark void and possibly discover where Azurill could be. But, for all his struggling, all he managed to achieve was a sharp pain at the back of his head. The memory of the vision stayed obstinately black, invisible and useless to him.

Annoyed and frustrated at his uselessness, he climbed out of the icy water and back onto the road, water dripping forlornly off his face and arms. He glanced around the plaza, thinking. Where else could he go to find Azurill? He didn't know the town's layout very well, and with all the Pokémon wandering around, it would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.

He violently shook the water off his fur, drenching the dirt beside him. Several unfamiliar Pokémon walked past him, shooting him curious glances. They quickly averted their gazes when Blue glowered at them. There wasn't any reason for him to stay here if Azurill isn't here.

But, right as he was about to leave the plaza, he noticed a familiar face rushing toward him. He felt a sudden rush of guilt flare up inside him as he recognized the Pokémon.

"You... you...!" The tall bird stopped in front of him, panting and gasping. His eyes were bulging out of his head as he glared angrily at Blue. The Riolu actually took a step back, intimidated by the sheer fury that was radiating out of the bird's gaze.

"Xatu..." Blue greeted the furious bird, trying to back away slowly.

"Where... where have you been?" Xatu said breathlessly, "You... have you forgotten our deal?"

"Urk...!" Blue took another step back. His back was now against the fountain's stone wall. He quickly thought back to the deal he struck with Xatu. How he promised to do a few matches in that battle event or whatever in exchange for some of Xatu's charms. However, the entire fiasco involving Azurill and Drowzee had completely blown that memory out of his mind.

Plus, he had spent an unknown amount of time unconscious and immobile. There wasn't anything he could've done about that!

"Xatu... I have a reason why I wasn't here," Blue said carefully, trying to sound as apologetic as possible. Xatu, however, just shook his head and sent Blue another angry glare.

"Save your excuses, Riolu," Xatu said, his voice dripping with ill – hidden anger, "I'll hear them out after you complete your part of our arrangement."

"W – wait," Blue tried to interject, but Xatu just reached forward and grabbed one of his paws. He was surprised by the gangly bird's strength as he was forcibly pulled off the fountain wall and dragged away by Xatu.

"I never would've imagined," Xatu grumbled quietly, but kept his voice just loud enough so Blue could hear, "that once I left you alone, you'd vanish and completely forget about your matches. Must I have to baby sit you like a child?"

"I'm telling you, I have a reason...!"

Xatu ignored him and continued with his angry tirade, "I was aware of the fact that, as a Riolu, you might be a little unaware of social norms and conduct. But I assumed you'd have to responsibility to at least try to honor our arrangement!"

"I don't understand what you mean by that!"

"How do you think I felt when I realized that you missed two of your matches?" Xatu seethed, still ignoring Blue's protests, "I had honestly believed that you were reneging on our deal, Riolu!"

"And worse of all," Xatu stopped dragging Blue and turned around, "imagine how I felt when I finally found you. Paddling around in the Founder's Fountain like a child, without a single care in the world."

His face was a mask of indignation as he scowled at Blue, "Were you possibly insulting me from afar?"

Blue tried to reply again, but he barely even got a single syllable out before another tirade from Xatu cut him off.

"Oh, a deal? Oh no, that's not important!" Xatu's voice became high pitched and stinging, "For I am a Riolu, I'd rather go for a swim than keep my promises! Wasting my time away inside of a fountain pool is much more important to me than anything else! I do not have a single care in a world! What a lark!"

Xatu mimed splashing around in a pool like a child before grasping Blue's paw again to tug him away. But, as he tried to pull the Riolu, he spoke.

"No..."

Xatu stopped. He suddenly felt as though a block of ice just slipped down his back. The Riolu's voice appeared to have changed. It suddenly sounded much more cold and threatening. He slowly turned around and saw Blue staring at the ground, unmoving.

"No? What do you mean no?"

Blue's head suddenly snapped upward. Xatu flinched when he saw Blue's face, or to be more precise, his expression.

Blue yanked his paw out of Xatu's grasp with an incredible force and glared at the bird, sending a wave of fear through the prophet's body.

"R – Riolu?" Xatu spoke with a quiet voice. He didn't know what to expect from the furious Pokémon in front of him.

Blue held up a single paw and pointed at him.

"You're wrong."

His tone was almost unrecognizable. It was almost as if another Pokémon had taken the Riolu's place and had spoken for him. Xatu took a nervous step back and quickly turned away from the Riolu's terrifying gaze.

"I'm wrong, am I?" Xatu said, trying to adopt his usual prideful voice to mask his growing unease, "Then do tell, give me an explanation that will satisfy my all – seeing eyes."

"If you do have all – seeing eyes, then you would've already known why you're wrong."

Xatu's eyes widened. He was unprepared for such an unexpectedly fast reply. He nervously glanced to his sides, trying to concoct a retort to give back to the Riolu. But before he could even conjure up a single word, the Riolu spoke again in the same low, icy tone.

"I remember when I first spoke with you. You boasted that you could see everything that happens in this town, and everything that surrounds it. Was that the truth?"

The Riolu's accusatory words felt like a freezing slap across Xatu's face. A cold sweat ran down his back as he took another step backward, away from the quiet Pokémon.

Panicked, frantic thoughts ran through Xatu's head. Did this Riolu know his secret? If so, then how? No, more importantly, if he did know his secret, then he could possibly spread it all around town...!

Xatu covered his face with his wings, trying to hide his terrified expression. If his secret got out, then his entire livelihood could be ruined! Taking a deep gulp, Xatu tried his best to recompose himself. He folded his wings on his chest and raised his head up high, putting on the most haughty expression he could muster.

He looked down at the Riolu. Despite his height, Xatu felt as though the Riolu had somehow grown to three times his size, towering over him like a behemoth.

"Y – yes, that is the truth." A pang of fear exploded inside of him as he heard his own voice come out as shaky and weak.

Blue's expression remained unchanged. His face still displayed skepticism and disbelief. Xatu glanced around him again. The two of them were slowly attracting a small crowd of curious onlookers. Suddenly, a flash of inspiration hit Xatu. He quickly swung his wings out wide, adopting his usual dramatic pose.

"It is because the blood of prophets and seers, my ancestors, run through my veins! We, Xatu, have incredible powers of precognition and divination that you cannot comprehend!" He was brutally aware of the amount of attention he was attracting from the passerby. But, that was the intention. Maybe, just maybe, if he managed to draw in enough people, the Riolu will stop questioning him...!

Gambling on that plan, he raised his voice to announce to the curious Pokémon watching, "To say that I am wrong would be to say that many generations of great prophets were wrong!"

"Alright then," Blue was unfazed, neither by the Xatu's forceful voice nor by the crowd slowly gathering around them. He simply crossed his arms and fired a simple question at the bird, "Then I'd like you to find something for me, find something with your all – seeing eyes."

"I... my eyes?" Xatu faltered. He could feel his hastily built plan crumbling around him. The crowd was beginning to mutter suspiciously amongst themselves as they watched the scene unfold.

"Yeah, that's right," Blue said as he bent down. With his paw, he began to sketch something in the dirt road. After a few moments of tense silence, the Riolu completed his drawing and took a step back, revealing the picture to Xatu.

"Is that... an Azurill?" Xatu said in a confused voice.

Blue nodded and pointed at the sketch, "I want you to use your all – seeing eyes and find out where she is."

"What – why?" Xatu spluttered, desperately trying to keep the pressure off of him, "Why do I have to do this?"

He took another nervous step back and glanced around him. The crowd was getting more and more riled up as the seconds flew by. Another idea appeared in his head, and without even considering it, he went with it.

"Hold on, this isn't even a part of our deal, Riolu!" He shouted in an indignant voice, "Do not try to mislead me!"

"I'm not misleading you or anything," Blue retorted with a low growl, making Xatu freeze up again, "You said you had the power to see everything in town, didn't you?"

He pointed accusingly at Xatu, "...or was that just a lie?"

"How dare you accuse me of lying! Such sight is but a simple task for a prophet as powerful as I!" Xatu shouted, but his indignant tone was faltering. The crowd's mumblings grew louder as Xatu continued to sweat nervously.

"Then why aren't you helping me?" Blue retorted immediately. The Riolu took a heavy step forward, sending sand scattering into the air from his foot, "It should be simple for you! Just... just help me find her! With your all – seeing eye!"

"I – I..." Xatu turned away from the Riolu's crimson eyes. He looked around them, trying to gauge how the crowd was reacting. The whispers had increased in volume as more and more bystanders began to congregate around them. To his horror, he thought he saw a few of his former customers within the crowd, watching him with suspicious eyes.

He needed to take control of their argument before the situation becomes too dangerous...!

He spread out his wings and shouted toward the heavens in the loudest voice his lungs could allow, "I AM XATU! I am the latest in generations and generations of prophets! The blood of seers and diviners run through my body, granting me the great power of prophecy and prediction! How dare you just come up and beg me for help?! You dirty Riol –!"

A sudden gust of wind struck Xatu squarely in the face, filling his beak with sand and immediately putting a halt to his angry tirade. A short cry of surprise and fear erupted from the crowd as the windstorm passed by. Xatu doubled over and coughed, having swallowed several grains of sand. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the Riolu standing at the center of the miniature tornado, surrounded by swirling sand and dust.

"I see." Blue withdrew his throbbing right foot from the small crater he made in the ground and turned his back to the coughing bird.

"R – Riolu...?"

Blue held up his arm to Xatu's face, shutting him up, "I honestly believed that you were a good person when we first met, Xatu." His voice wasn't angry. Rather, Blue sounded disappointed, sad even. "I don't understand many things about this world. Money, reading, or what that 'grand battle royale' was."

"But," Blue clenched his right paw into a fist, "I was glad when you struck that deal with me. I thought you were a pretty nice guy, a little creepy maybe, but still a nice enough person to help out someone as clueless as me."

"Your charms? You said they were worth weeks worth of Poké. It wasn't something that was possible for me. But then, you gave me a way to earn them." Blue paused and looked at Xatu for a second before continuing, "You told me that all I had to do was fight in a few matches in this battle event, and you'd give them to me. That was generous of you, and I appreciate that."

Blue's head slumped down, breaking their eye contact. He spoke in an ashamed voice, "But I know I broke our deal, and I'm sorry. It was my fault, and I can't really deny that."

"But, there was a reason why I had to turn back on our deal."

Xatu stared down at where Blue's eyes were looking. The small drawing of the Azurill was still there, just barely visible underneath all the kicked up sand.

"A friend of mine disappeared, and I need to go find her," Xatu noticed that Blue's right arm was trembling as he talked, "That's why I can't go play around in that battle royale anymore. That's why I have to break our deal. For every second I stand here, unmoving, the longer it'll take for me to find her, and the more danger she could be in."

Blue spun around and looked at Xatu. His expression wasn't angry anymore, but rather, it was an expression of desperation.

"That's why I'm begging for your help," Blue suddenly fell to the ground, bowing down in front of Xatu, pleading, "I don't know this city. I can't find her on my own. I need your help. Use your sight, use that ability of yours to see everything and find her. 'Dirty Riolu?' I don't care whatever you call me! Just... just help me find her!"

"I..." Xatu was speechless. He didn't know what to do. The Riolu was now in front of him, prostrating like a fool and begging for his assistance. The crowd around him was beginning to whisper even louder and louder. Everybody seemed to be waiting expectantly for Xatu's reply.

"Xatu, please answer me!"

What can he do? What can he say? How can he just go out and announce to the Riolu that he lacked the power of sight?!

* * *

"Um... contestant number 27? This is your third call!"

The Buneary looked around the crowd surrounding the combat ring uneasily. Contestant 27, the Riolu from Crystal Cave was absent again, for the third time. She could hear the grumbles of discontent slowly rising from the crowd as they waited for the Riolu to appear. Nervously, she turned her head over to the roof of the building where her bosses sat.

Machoke wore a bored expression on his face, his chin on his fist and his arm on his knee. He stared at the ring, where only one of the two combatants were present. His companions, Hariyama and Staraptor stood beside Machoke, watching their guildmaster's expression concernedly. When Machoke gets bored, bad things tend to happen.

"What is going on?" He grumbled, making Staraptor and Hariyama jump. Machoke pointed his thumb impatiently at the half – empty ring, "Why the heck hasn't the battle started yet? This is getting to be really freaking boring."

Staraptor and Hariyama glanced over at the ring, and then back at Machoke. A small frown had formed on his craggy face, a clear warning sign to the two that something dangerous was about to occur.

"I'm gonna go and see if there's anything I can do about this," He said, sending a chill down Hariyama and Staraptor's spines. Machoke turned and gestured to his avian companion. The crested Pokémon gave a loud sigh and extended his wings. Machoke hopped on the large bird's back and within seconds, the two launched off the roof and into the air.

"Where are we going, guildmaster?" Staraptor asked in a hesitant tone. Machoke folded his beefy arms across his chest dangerously as he sat on Staraptor's back. He pointed at the floating Buneary with a finger.

The Buneary watched worryingly as her bosses soared closer and closer to her. Staraptor flapped his powerful wings and halted his flight, stopping himself next to the balloon and bunny pair.

"B – boss, what's the problem?" Buneary asked in a timid voice. Machoke grunted and stood up on the flapping bird's back, expertly keeping his balance.

"What's going on?" He demanded with a shout, making the bunny flinch in fear, "Why hasn't the battle started yet? This is the third time already!"

"E – eep...!" Buneary covered her eyes with her fluffy ears. Fearfully, she peeked out from underneath of of her ears and answered hesitatingly, "I – It's because one of the contestants is missing, again..."

"Which one?" Machoke grunted, flexing his two beefy arms, "I'll go find that fighter and give him a stern talking to." He slammed his fist into his other hand, making a loud booming noise.

Buneary mentally apologized to the Riolu before she replied, "I – it's the 27th contestant, sir... a Riolu from Crystal Cave."

"A Riolu, eh?" Machoke mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "That's pretty rare around these parts."

"Honestly Machoke, have you been paying attention to every match?" Staraptor remarked exasperatingly, "That Riolu's already fought in a match against a Mienfoo earlier."

"I must've been asleep," Machoke grinned and shrugged, "Some of the fights have been boring as heck, so I decided to take a nap."

"You hosted this battle royale, the least you could do is be present for it."

"Forget that!" Machoke folded his arms again, cutting the conversation short. He slapped Staraptor's back energetically, "Come on Rapta, we got a Riolu to find!"

"You never listen, do you?" Rapta shook his head, trying to endure the five – fingered pain he now felt on his back, "Well, you're the boss. Just try to not hit me while we fly, alright?"

Rapta quickly uttered a few quick instructions to Buneary on how to proceed with the battle royale before flapping his powerful wings and soaring agilely into the sky.

"Let's see, Riolu, Riolu, Riolu..." Machoke clutched Rapta's feathers tightly as he leaned over the side of the bird to see the ground below. Hordes and hordes of Pokémon were still just wandering the streets and roads of Treasure Town, making it fairly difficult to pick out a single individual out of the crowd. But Machoke didn't care, he continued to scan the surroundings for that one Riolu.

"Out of curiosity, Guildmaster," Rapta said to Machoke, but still keeping his head forward and focused on his flight, "Do you even know what a Riolu looks like?"

"Of course!" Machoke announced bombastically. Staraptor sighed and nodded, feeling a sense of relief wash over him.

"...not!"

Rapta suddenly braked in midair. If he was on the ground running, then he might've made a loud skidding noise. The great crested bird turned his head around as he tried to stabilize himself in the air. He goggled at the grinning muscular Pokémon on his back.

"Are you joking, Guildmaster?!" He squawked in disbelief, "You don't even know what we're looking for?"

Machoke roared with laughter as he saw his avian companion's incredulous expression. He slapped the bird on the back again, making them drop down a few feet in altitude.

"Of course I know what a Riolu looks like, Rapta!" He said, tears forming in his eyes, "I was just joking with you, ha ha ha!"

"Ugh... Guildmaster, please," Rapta sighed as the stinging pain on his back doubled, "Save the jokes for when we're back on the ground."

"Alright, alright." Machoke agreed, still amused, "Let's fly a little bit lower. I think I see something interesting going on near the Founder's Fountain."

Rapta nodded and lowered their height, gently descending toward the ground. With a loud _flumph!_ noise, the great crested bird landed on the road in a dignified fashion. Pokémon that were standing around their landing spot quickly covered their eyes and face as a great gust of sandy wind was blown toward them.

Machoke dismounted his avian friend and grinned as he stood in the center of the small crowd of cringing Pokémon. He looked around to see what was going on.

"M – Machoke?!" One of the Pokémon behind him shouted in surprise. Machoke grinned at the sight of someone recognizing him. He quickly flexed his muscles and performed his usual dynamic pose.

"That's Guildmaster Machoke to you!" He announced, pointing a muscled finger up into the air. He spun around and displayed a shining smile while Staraptor ashamedly covered his face with his wing behind him.

His smile faltered when he saw the strange sight in front of him. A Xatu was standing in front of a prostrating Riolu. The Riolu looked like he had seen better days, as scars and wounds covered his entire body. Both Pokémon wore similar expressions, but they contained different emotions. Xatu looked startled, his face aghast and terrified. But the Riolu held a defiant gaze behind his startled expression.

The Riolu shook off his surprise first. Machoke watched as the little blue Pokémon stand up. He expected the Riolu to walk up to him and ask what he was doing here, and maybe ask him for his autograph, so he quickly displayed his pectoral muscles in anticipation.

"Xatu, I need your answer. Please."

Machoke's mouth dropped wide open. The Riolu had completely ignored his dynamic pose in favor of addressing the Xatu! Even the Xatu looked amazed at the sheer audacity of the Riolu.

"My, my," Rapta shook his head, amused, "I've never seen a Pokémon ignore you like that before." He tittered behind his wing before finishing, "What a refreshing sight."

"Xatu...!" The Riolu grabbed onto the totem pole – esque bird's wings with his paw and tugged hard, nearly pulling the bird off balance.

"I... Riolu..." Xatu looked like he was going to faint. So many things were happening at the same time that it was overwhelming the poor bird's senses.

"Hey now!" Machoke, indignant at being ignored, stomped forward and separated the Riolu and the Xatu. Several white feathers flew into the air as the Riolu was forced aside, his paw still clutching a few of Xatu's plumage.

"What do you want?" The Riolu angrily shot Machoke a threatening glare, "I don't have time for this!"

"That's my line, you brat!" Machoke shouted, returning the blue Pokémon's glare, "You're that Riolu, right? You're supposed to be fighting in my battle royale, have you forgot?"

"That has nothing to do with this right now!" He shouted back obstinately, "There are more important things right now than your stupid battle royale!"

"Riolu!" Xatu shouted, aghast.

Machoke stared at the Riolu with his mouth hanging. He simply could not believe the sheer brazenness coming out of this little Riolu. Machoke had never seen a Pokémon brave enough to stand up to him and call something of his stupid before, in his face no less.

"Guildmaster, calm down," Rapta sensed the tension in the atmosphere and quickly rushed to Machoke's side. He placed a wing on the muscled Pokémon's back, trying to calm him down, "Losing one contestant isn't a big deal. Just let it go. We can go back to the arena and watch the rest of the battles play out. Come on, Guildmaster...!"

Rapta glanced nervously at Xatu, and then to Riolu. He didn't know how the situation was going to play out, and was afraid that this might end up drawing his Guildmaster's anger out. The last thing they needed right now was a great brawl to break out in the middle of town between his Guildmaster and a random Pokémon!

"Guildmaster!"

Machoke suddenly swept his arm out, knocking aside Rapta's wing. Rapta's eyes widened in surprise as he saw his Guildmaster slowly step toward the Riolu. The Riolu wasn't moving away either. In fact, the little Pokémon was standing his ground against Machoke.

"So you're Riolu, eh?" Machoke growled in a low voice.

The Riolu glowered at the taller Pokémon. "My name is Blue." Machoke's eyes widened as Blue continued, "I'm getting sick of people calling me Riolu."

Machoke raised his eyebrow curiously. It's not often that a Pokémon would divulge their personal names so easily. This Riolu must be incredibly brave or foolish, he thought. Or perhaps he was just trying to catch him off guard with a false name.

"Heh, alright then 'Blue,'" Machoke spoke in a deep, low voice, "I have a deal for you."

"I'm sick of deals," Blue spat out angrily, making Xatu flinch beside him, "The answer is no. I don't want to waste anymore time dealing with this."

"Hold on Rio –... Blue," Machoke said, grabbing onto Blue's shoulder.

Blue grumbled angrily and tried to brush off Machoke's hand, but he couldn't break off from Machoke's incredibly powerful grip. Giving up on pulling out of his grasp, Blue settled for glaring at the grinning Machoke instead.

"You're tough, and you're pretty stubborn. I like that," Machoke said, making Blue raise an eyebrow in confusion.

Machoke grinned widely at the Riolu and announced loudly, "I want you to join my guild, Blue!"

"What?!"

Blue, Xatu and Rapta all echoed the same word. Machoke released his grip on Blue's shoulder and folded his arms, looking like he had just made the best decision in the world.

"You went and ditched my battle royale so you'd be able to go and catch my attention, didn't you?" Machoke said in a smug voice, believing he had just figured everything else, "And let me tell you, I'm impressed!"

Machoke chuckled as he began to list out his thoughts, "You're strong, I could tell by how you're still standing tall even with all those injuries you have on you. You're brave, seeing as how you went and stood up against me and gave me your name like it wasn't anything."

Machoke lifted up his hand and made a thumb's up, "You're the best of the best! I like you Riolu... I mean, Blue! I'd gladly welcome you into my guild!"

Blue stared silently at Machoke. Completely dumbfounded. He turned his head and looked at Xatu. The totem pole bird was also staring at Machoke in disbelief, his beak hanging open like a mailbox. Rapta was also struck dumb by his Guildmaster's unbelievable proclamation.

"Well? Don't leave me hanging here! What do you say, Blue?"

Blue folded his arms and closed his eyes, mulling over what just happened. Everything seemed to be rushing by so fast that he couldn't quite keep up. But, despite that, he knew what he had to do right now.

"No."

"Haha, great! Let me just take you to the guild ha... what?" Machoke's grin seemed to slip off his face like water as he watched Blue shake his head. Rapta sighed and shook his crested head at Blue's response while Xatu just continued to gape at the proceedings in stunned silence.

Confused and startled, the muscled Pokémon rushed forward and grasped the Riolu's shoulders, "What do you mean, no?! You're giving up the chance to join the strongest and the bravest and the best of the best! Machoke's Guild!"

"I said no, Machoke," Blue brushed off Machoke's grip easily this time. He backed up a few paces away from the muscled Pokémon, wary of being grabbed again. He shook his head, confirming his decision.

"I'm sorry, but I don't have time to play around right now with guilds and battle royales." Blue bowed and stared straight into Machoke's despondent eyes, "I need you to understand. A friend of mine is possibly in severe danger right now... and I need to find her."

"...danger?" Machoke quickly recomposed himself as soon as he heard that word. He glanced over to Rapta, who was sharing the same serious expression on his face. Machoke quickly turned back to the Riolu, his previous boisterous tone completely replaced by a serious, no – nonsense voice, "What do you mean danger? Tell me all the details, Blue."

"What...?" Blue was taken aback by Machoke's sudden change in personality.

"I'm the Guildmaster of one of the three largest guilds in Treasure Town," He said with a slight hint of pride in his voice, "I have connections to many Pokémon that work in this town. If one of your friends is in trouble, then I can definitely help you."

"Machoke..." A great wave of gratitude flooded through Blue's body when he heard that. Machoke grinned at him and thumped his chest with his fist.

"On our honor as members of Machoke's Guild, we will do whatever we can to assist you, Blue." He turned to Rapta and nodded. Rapta nodded back and placed his wing on his feathered chest, making the same pose as Machoke.

"Thank you so much!" Blue shouted, bowing low in front of the muscled Pokémon.

"So hurry, tell us what happened, Blue," Rapta said, his voice urgent.

Blue nodded and began to recount the events to the two guild members.

* * *

"Fé~e!"

I turned around and saw Sunflora and Loudred running up to Marill and I. Both of them seemed to be carrying large, heavy bundles of rolled – up paper. I quickly gestured to Marill to stop running and to wait.

"Sunflora, Loudred! Did you discover anything?" I asked as soon as they reached us. Loudred panted heavily, clutching his legs as he tried to catch his breath. Before I could ask him anything, he hurriedly shoved a piece of paper in my paws.

"Fée..." He said, still panting, "This... this is bad! Read the paper and see...!"

"What?" I pulled the paper out of his hand and unfurled it. I covered my mouth as I saw a large drawing of a Drowzee adorn the surface of the rolled – up parchment. At the top, in large, bolded letters displayed the word **OUTLAW**.

"It's... it's, ooh! It's really bad...!" Sunflora gasped, pointing at the Drowzee's face, "This Pokémon was just listed as an outlaw on... on every notice board in every guild...!"

Outlaw... the word echoed inside my head. For a Pokémon to be considered an outlaw, that means they did something awful enough that the guilds deemed it necessary to have all explorers and citizens to be aware of how dangerous that Pokémon is. It's not often that outlaw boards get updated nowdays, especially after they introduced the apprenticeship system for new explorers.

But, there still are bad Pokémon out there. I thought back to yesterday, when I was attacked by Koffing and Zubat and had my treasure stolen from me in the middle of town.

I quickly shook my head and dismissed that memory. I stared down at the outlaw poster that Loudred gave me and read the description underneath Drowzee's face.

"'Drowzee: Name unknown. This outlaw is a felon who is known to have attempted kidnappings of children in: Spring Town, Post Town, and Unity City. All citizens and explorers who spot this outlaw are encouraged to immediately report to the nearest sheriff's office or exploration guild. Do not, under any circumstances, engage in combat with the outlaw. Reports have cited the outlaw to possess the ability to forcibly induce unconsciousness within seconds."

I quickly looked up from the poster and gave Sunflora a terrified look.

"K – kidnappings? Children?!" I could hardly hold back my fear when I spoke, "D... do you think he might've..."

I bit my lip and looked over to Marill. He gaped at the poster in my paws, and his mouth was quivering. He looked like he was about to burst into tears at any moment.

"We don't know," Loudred quickly said, noticing Marill's condition, "but the fact that this alert was just put up means that he's definitely in this town."

Sunflora quickly slapped Loudred over the head, making him spill some posters onto the ground. One of the rolled up papers ended up in front of Marill, where it unfurled on its own.

"He's in this town..." I echoed Loudred's words, mulling them over. Blue said he ran into a Drowzee that was terrorizing Azurill before he fell unconscious. A sickening thought ran through my head.

"Where's Blue?" I asked Sunflora, "Weren't you all running together to go find Azurill?"

Sunflora shook her head and pointed over to the end of the road, "We got split up very quickly. Blue ran ahead so fast that he left me and Loudred behind." She glanced worryingly over to her companion before continuing, "So we went to the guild district to see if we could gather up any information from the Pokémon there. That's when we found these outlaw posters."

She gestured to the paper rolls in her hands, "We were terrified at the prospect of Azurill running into that outlaw, so we took as many extra posters as we could carry and started pasting them all around town. Just in case someone sees him."

"That doesn't mean she's been caught by him or anything!" Loudred quickly interrupted, noticing the mortified look on Marill's face, "We're just being cautious, that's all!"

"So what should we do now?" I asked, quickly patting Marill's back to calm him down, "Do we keep looking around the town, or should we try to meet up with Blue?"

Sunflora handed me another poster and said, "You two go and find Blue. We'll keep on placing these posters up while asking the Pokémon around if they've seen either Azurill or this outlaw."

Loudred heaved his load of posters onto his shoulder and glanced behind him. "The way I see it," He said, waving a rolled up poster around, "We'll be safe if we find either of them. If we find Drowzee, then we don't have to worry about him capturing Azurill. If we find Azurill, then we can protect her from that creep."

"What if someone else finds Azurill and kidnaps her...?"

The three of us turned to look at Marill, who was staring intently at the outlaw poster in front of him. He clutched the sides of the poster with his paws, crinkling the paper.

"What do you mean?" Sunflora said nervously.

Marill shook his head and said in a hollow voice, "What if... what if there were more than one kidnapper? What if it isn't just Drowzee?"

"Ooh..." Sunflora dropped her stack of posters and covered her mouth with her leaves. Loudred quickly picked up her posters and shook his head.

"Don't think like that, Marill," He stated confidently, adding Sunflora's posters to his own stack, "We'll find her, don't you worry."

"But what if you dont?!" He shouted, throwing the poster away and staring at Loudred with watery eyes, "What if I never find her again?! What if... what if she's gone forever...?"

He dropped to the ground and grabbed the dirt, "I don't want... I don't want our last conversation to be an argument between us... I'm so sorry Azurill... I'm so sorry mother...!"

He stared at the dirt on his paws as he quivered on the ground. Tears began to stream down his eyes again as he kept mumbling apologies to his sister and his mother as if it was a mantra.

"Marill..." I tried to speak in a calming tone, but my voice was shaky as well. I was just as scared as Marill was. I didn't want to imagine Azurill being captured by the Drowzee, but even I couldn't help but think about the worst possible outcome. I fought to hold back my own tears as I tried to comfort the sobbing Marill.

"Marill... I'm so sorry," Sunflora knelt and gently wiped away the dirt on his paws, "But I promise you. I promise you...!"

She wiped away his tears with her leaves and gave him a confident look, "You'll have your sister back before the sun rises tomorrow. She'll be back home, safe and sound. On our honor as members of Wigglytuff's Guild!"

She stood up and nodded to Loudred, who returned the gesture by flexing a bicep.

"Fée," Loudred addressed me, "Take care of Marill, and go meet up with Blue. I'm sure he'll be at the Founder's Fountain."

"How do you know?"

"He shouted something about going to check the fountain before we got split up," Loudred replied. He pointed over to the other end of the road and nodded to me, "The two of us will go and gather as much information as we can, and we'll go and tell every Pokémon we meet to keep their eyes, ears and noses open for Azurill or Drowzee. Alright?"

"Alright, thank you Loudred," I gave him a curt nod and looked over to Sunflora, "Thank you too, Sunflora."

"Oh my gosh, don't waste your time thanking us!" She said, hurrying me back onto my feet, "Go, go! Time's a wasting, eek!"

I understood. I hastily pulled Marill up from the ground and began to shove him toward the direction of the plaza with my head. He moved sluggishly. Apology after apology kept coming out of his mouth as I pushed him. I turned around and saw Sunflora and Loudred waving at me. Loudred give me a quick thumbs up before they ran off in the other direction.

"Fée... am I a bad brother?" Marill mumbled as I turned back to keep pushing him.

"Don't worry Marill. We'll find her. We'll definitely find her."

I said that in my most confident voice. I wanted Marill to feel better. I didn't want him to be scared anymore. But...

I was also scared. Doubt and worry kept clouding my mind as we continued to run. I wanted someone to comfort me as well, to tell me that everything will be alright. But, I can't beg for such a selfish wish right now. It took everything I had to try and put on a confident facade to keep Marill from completely breaking down.

* * *

Xatu stood stock still as Blue finished recounting his situation. From when the Riolu separated from Xatu to when they met each other again next to the fountain. An acute sense of nausea began to rush into his body as he took in the information he just received.

His nausea was compounded further as he remembered the Riolu's face and voice when he begged him for help. It wasn't anger, it was desperation. The Riolu sought the abilities he had so boasted about, and sincerely asked him to use those powers to rescue a missing friend. How selfish had he been, to think about his own reputation and pride when this Riolu was trying to find help? Why had he been so blinded by his pride?

But, due to his own selfishness, he couldn't just divulge the fact that he lacked such powers. He couldn't tell the Riolu that he lacked the sight that his ancestors all possessed. Furthermore, he made the situation even worse by dragging in more and more bystanders, making it even more difficult for himself to admit his shortcomings.

Instead, he hid his false pride under a mask of bravado, of anger and fury toward the Riolu. He wanted to shame the Riolu for forcing him into that difficult situation, and for the sake of his worthless reputation, he wanted to shoo the Riolu away when all the Riolu wanted was help. Help that he erroneously made the Riolu believe he could provide.

But now, as he stood there, silently watching the selfless Riolu thank Machoke and Staraptor for lending him their aid, he realized just how lamentable he really was.

What pride? What reputation? He was no prophet. He had no great power of great prophecy or prediction. The only thing he had was the blood of his ancestors, and even then, he had sullied it with his cowardly ways.

Day by day, he would sit in his tent, waiting for a fool to be interested in his overpriced, worthless wares. Then he would take the money and waste it by gambling with Persian and his crew. Xatu remember the coin that Persian had handed to him earlier today. A symbol of his avarice, of his foolish pride. A symbol of his worthless, pitiable life.

What had he believed that he had over that Riolu? Was it knowledge? No, even though Xatu knew the value of money, it didn't matter. Even though he knew how to read, it didn't matter. Since he couldn't even understand the value of being selfless.

A sickening wave of shame forced Xatu to cover his face. He felt the missing feathers in his wing, when Machoke tore him and Riolu apart.

"And so, I'll head back to the combat ring and tell Hariyama to make an announcement about this situation. Then, I'll be heading to the sheriff's to get the news out." Through his wing, Xatu heard a snippet of their conversation. It seemed like it was wrapping up, with Machoke delivering the final orders.

"What about me, guildmaster?" The Staraptor asked.

Machoke gestured toward the Riolu and said, "Rapta, you'll be taking Blue up into the skies and making a quick trip around the perimeter. Where the two of you will scour the town and keep your eyes open for that Drowzee scumbag."

"I see," Staraptor nodded and turned toward the Riolu, "Do you have any objections with riding on me in the sky?"

"None," The Riolu stated fearlessly.

Xatu admired the Riolu's bravery. To accept such an offer without any reservations. A sense of jealousy arose within him. If he had been that strong, would he have been able to prevent himself from making the mistakes he made in his past?

His shame grew. He could no longer allow himself to stay present in the proceedings. As the Riolu leapt on top of the Staraptor, Xatu slowly slunk away into the crowd and sneaked away, still covering his face in guilt.

* * *

"Hang on tight, Riol... I mean, Blue," Rapta cautioned, "It might be a little bit rough if you've never flown before."

"I don't think I'll ever be able to fly," Blue commented wryly as he threw his arms around the great bird's neck, "You'll have to tell me how it feels."

Rapta clacked his beak, amused. "Heh, perhaps if you join our guild."

Before Blue could reply, the Staraptor extended his two dark – brown wings out from beside him. With a powerful beat of his wings, the two of them were immediately airborne. Blue stared in awe as he saw the town rapidly shrink beneath him. A great panorama of the world stretched out from beneath him. Trees, hills, and mountains all mixed together to form a beautiful pastel of colors.

"You alright back there?" Rapta yelled through the noise of the wind as they continued to ascend high and higher.

Blue leaned over to Rapta's head and shouted, "I'm fine! How much higher are we going to go?"

"Just a little more, hold on tight!"

Blue took the advice to heart and clung tightly onto the thick feathers on the bird's back.

"We're going to go for a quick fly around the town," Rapta announced, "Keep your eyes open for any sightings of that Drowzee fellow."

"Understood!" Blue steeled himself and pulled himself up so he could get a better view of the world below.

Rapta tucked in his wings and went into a dive, descending toward the town at breakneck speeds. Blue felt as though his entire body had become weightless as an incredible amount of wind pressure blew against him. Once Rapta reached the perfect height, he extended his wings again and tilted toward the side, making a wide turn in the skies.

When Blue opened his eyes, he found that they were gliding over the town, skimming just barely above the roofs of the buildings. He quickly looked down and strained his eyes, scanning the Pokémon wandering around in the town. Every street, road, back alley, plaza and district were crammed to the brim with hundreds, if not thousands of Pokémon, making it near impossible for him to pinpoint the two Pokémon.

"Any luck?" He heard Rapta shout over the wind.

"None so far," He said bitterly as he blinked away the dust that got in his eyes, "Can you make another turn around the main plaza again?"

"If that's what you wish," Rapta acquiesced and began to ascend again. Once they were at a safe height to turn, Rapta soared around in a large loop and began to fly toward the Founder's Fountain once more.

Blue continued to scan the crowds for yellow or blue Pokémon wandering around, but every time he saw a flash of that color, it always turned out to be a Pokémon other than Drowzee or Azurill. Frustration welling up inside of him, he leaned over to the side of Rapta's head again.

"I can't find them anywhere in the town," He voiced his frustrations to the bird, "Do you think Drowzee or Azurill could be in a building or outside?"

"Building searches aren't our job. Machoke's got that handled," Rapta replied, "As for being outside, there is only one safe way out of Treasure Town. And that is through the entrance."

Blue turned around and looked at the large gate that separated the town from the frontier. A massive crowd of Pokémon was still lined up against it, waiting for permission to enter the town.

"If Drowzee had tried to exit that way, then he definitely would have a hard time getting through while carrying a prisoner." Rapta reasoned, gliding in a circle above the gate.

Blue mulled over the idea of Drowzee leaving the town through the entrance. If he was carrying a struggling Azurill in his hands, then definitely, he would be stopped for being suspicious. However, what if he didn't look suspicious? A sudden idea entered his mind.

"Rapta, a friend of mine told me that Drowzee have the ability to put Pokémon to sleep," He informed the bird, "What if Drowzee knocked Azurill unconscious, and then smuggled her out while she couldn't resist?"

"You have a shrewd mind," Rapta replied, his voice darkening a bit, "As much as I hate to imagine it, that is a possible scenario. Drowzee are Pokémon that are well known to be proficient in hypnotic powers."

"What do we do then?"

Rapta clacked his beak before responding, "There's one place around here that can provide a high enough vantage point for us to see everything around Treasure Town. If we stop near the summit, we'll have the perfect view of the frontier. We'll be heading there."

"Where is that?"

"A mountain," Rapta replied, "Mount Bristle."


	12. You bastard!

**•   
Chapter 12  
**

**"You bastard!"**

Blue clung tightly onto Rapta's back as they rocketed upwards into the heavens. The two of them tore through the sky, slicing their way through the gusting wind. Layers and layers of white cloud were blown aside as the great crested bird plowed through unstoppably like a great, feathery bullet. Eventually, once the last wall of cloud was bested, Rapta halted their ascent by spreading out his wings wide.

They hovered within the vast blue sky, surrounded by tiny wisps of white cloud and backed by the shining golden sun. Feeling a little lightheaded, Blue crawled over to the side of Rapta's body and peered down at the land below. To his frustration, no matter which way he looked, all Blue could see was an endless sea of blindingly white cloud.

However, directly underneath them, Blue spotted the hole they made in the cloud layer. It pierced straight through the great wall of white, and from where he was sitting, he could just barely make out the outline of Treasure Town. From his height, the buildings inside the town looked like nothing more than toy blocks, while the crowds and crowds of Pokémon resembled multicolored dots wandering around the streets.

But as Blue tried to get a better look at the land surrounding the town, the cloud layer quickly reformed, plugging up the hole with another thick blanket of white. Blue growled in irritation and unintentionally plucked out a few feathers from Rapta's back.

"If you keep tugging like that, you'll lose your grip, Blue," Rapta remarked wryly, noticing the Riolu's tension.

Surprised, Blue quickly threw away the feathers in his paw and apologized.

Rapta clacked his beak and replied, "Don't fret. Feathers grow back, passengers don't," Rapta gave a humorous chuckle and soared around the top of the cloud layer in a circle.

"I'm surprised at how brave you are," Rapta remarked, "not many Pokémon can keep their wits about them when they're this high up in the sky."

"There's nothing to be afraid about," Blue replied as he glanced over the side of Rapta's body, down at the clouds below, "there's more important things on my mind than falling off."

"Heh," Rapta clacked his beak in approval, "I can see why Guildmaster likes you so much. You're exactly his type, Blue."

"Uhm..."

Rapta shook his head, "I didn't mean it like that," He clarified, "our guild prefers Pokémon of strong mind and body. You can be the toughest, roughest and strongest Pokémon around, but you're nothing if you lack an ounce of courage."

Blue mulled over Rapta's words while they made another loop around in the air.

"So then, that battle royale thing?"

Rapta snorted, "That? That's just to appease the Guildmaster's boredom," Blue tilted his head in confusion. Rapta seemed to notice his questioning gaze on the back of his head and continued, "Well, not just to appease his boredom."

"By hosting a combat event like that, we can easily see what kind of Pokémon you are through battle. When one is in the midst of combat, one tends to show their true self. Whether they like it or not. And that's what we're looking for. Strong, brave Pokémon that don't give up, even when backed into a corner."

"So...then there's really no point in winning it?"

"None."

"Huh," Blue gave a low whistle before replying, "I didn't think it was that deep. I just thought Pokémon joined it to beat each other up for fun."

"Well, I guess most see it that way," Rapta said in an exasperated voice, "we've already received several complaints from townspeople and Kadabra's Guild as well about how we were promoting brutality and violence on the streets."

Rapta sensed Blue's gaze again and quickly stated, "We aren't, of course! I've already told you our reasons for hosting such an event! Besides, it's all Guildmaster and Hariyama's idea anyway!"

Blue chuckled, amused by how flustered the bird was becoming. While he didn't fully understand, he could tell that the Machoke's Guild had good intentions for whatever they were planning. He reaffirmed his trust in their group and patted Rapta on the back.

"Alright, I get it," He said with a wide grin on his face, "now come on, let's get moving. We have to go find Drowzee and Azurill."

Rapta nodded and clacked his beak once more.

"You'd best hold on tight then," He said in a serious voice, "this might get a little rough."

Before Blue could ask for an explanation, Rapta's wings suddenly snapped back to his sides. Then, immediately afterward, the great crested bird began to spiral down at an incredible speed. Blue let a yelp escape his mouth as he quickly secured himself to the spinning bird's back.

White filled Blue's vision as they dove back into the cloud layer. However, instead of tearing straight through to the other side, Rapta extended his wings, catching the winds while within the white ocean and soared through the icy world. Blue shivered uncontrollably as the temperature around them suddenly dropped like a rock. Half frozen droplets of water splashed against Blue's face and shoulders, sending chills throughout his body.

"We're almost through, just hang in there," Rapta said, evidently unfazed by the freezing clouds, "Apologies for the rough treatment, but this is the fastest way!"

Blue opened his mouth to respond, but accidentally swallowed an icy chunk of white cloud instead. He settled on just trusting the bird and closing his eyes, hoping for the icy ride to end soon.

Eventually, the trip through the icy abyss ended as Rapta began to ascend once more at a high speed. Streams of white trailed behind them as they glided out of the white ocean and into the warm, sunny skies once more. Blue released a great sigh of relief as he let the wun slowly warm his body back up.

Blue glanced backward. While most of the skies was still covered in cloud, he could just barely make out the edge of the sparkling blue ocean in the distance. As for where Treasure Town was, he had no idea. It had become a tiny speck in the distance. Blue turned back forward and was greeted with an amazing sight.

"Is that Mount Bristle?" He whispered in awe.

A huge, gray monolith of rock and silt rose up above them, piercing the cloud layer. The great mass of stone was covered by age – worn crags and sheer cliffs. Hardy trees attempted to grow on the mountain bluffs while small bushes and grasses dotted its surface, painting its gray surface with splotches of green. The hills, forests, rivers, and lakes that surrounded its base couldn't even hope to match up to the gargantuan mass of rock and earth. As for Blue and Rapta, they were but tiny motes of dust in comparison to the mountain.

"Tallest mountain of the frontier," Rapta replied pridefully, staring at the mountainside, "can't imagine a better place to keep a lookout for escapees from town."

"But," Blue quickly turned back and glanced at Treasure Town in the distance, "we're so far away from town, I don't see how this will help us at all!"

To Blue's surprise, Rapta just chuckled at his incredulous reply.

"Don't worry, Blue," Rapta said in a confident voice, "being up here is our best choice for finding either Drowzee or Azurill, you'll see. Now hold on tight, we're going to land on a cliff."

Although he still felt uncertain, Blue decided to continue trusting the bird. He clung on tightly as they descended toward the craggy mountain.

* * *

"Sir, sir! A massive bird has been spotted in the skies!"

"What? Another visitor? This is becoming quite a surprising day!"

"Sir, what do we do? What do we do?"

"Perform Formation Omega! I will see this for myself!"

"Yes sir! Performing Formation Omega immediately!""

The small, squirrel – like Pokémon bounced off his thick, striped tail and curled up into a small ball. His companion, a brown chipmunk – esque Pokémon leapt on top of his balled up companion and held up his paws to his eyes. His red and yellow irises gleamed brightly as he scanned the skies, looking for the bird that his comrade discovered.

"I have spotted the bird! I repeat, I have spotted the bird!" The chipmunk announced in a loud, commanding voice, "Sentret, prepare to receive them!"

"Yes sir, Patrat! I will prepare to receive them immediately!" Sentret replied dutifully and began to roll toward the mountain, with Patrat still riding on him.

"Halt! Cease your rolling, Sentret!" Patrat shouted, startled, "We have not disengaged Formation Omega yet! Stop your movement!"

"Oh, whoops!" Sentret quickly halted his movement, but it was a bit too quick. Patrat wasn't ready for the sudden stop and was launched off the ball like a brown rocket. The little chipmunk Pokémon tumbled through the air before landing onto the rocky ground. He rolled forward in a small brown ball before he struck the side of the mountain cliff, halting his movement.

"My apologies sir!" Sentret stated, quickly putting up a salute with his right paw. Patrat groaned and grasped his head while the cliffside spun around him dizzily. He shook his head, refocusing himself before jumping back onto his feet.

"Sentret, I've warned you multiple times about forgetting to disengage Formation Omega!" He chided his squirrely companion, "I will make sure to mark this on your report by the end of the day! A demerit!"

"No! Not a demerit! Anything but that!" Sentret clasped the sides of his face, aghast, "Patrat, I'm greatly sorry about my mistake! Please, do not give me a demerit!"

Sentret dropped down to the ground in a pleading fashion, begging for for the Patrat to be lenient on him. Patrat, on the other hand, huffed and turned away from the bowing Sentret and folded his arms stubbornly.

"Um..."

Suddenly, the arrival of a new voice in their midst made the two rodent Pokémon spin around. Blue and Rapta had landed on their cliff, looking confused and amused at the same time.

"Egad! The guests have landed! And there's two of them!" Patrat ran up to Sentret and quickly pulled him back onto his feet. He leaned over and whispered into Sentret's ear, "I thought you said there was only the bird!"

"Sir, I didn't see if the bird had a rider or not!" Sentret argued back, "I could only see from a bottom to up perspective, sir! It was physically impossible for me to tell if there was a Pokémon riding him, sir!"

Patrat drubbed Sentret over the head with his paw, "Then you should've tried harder, Sentret!" He pointed to the skies and said in a loud, proud voice, "We are the watchers of Mount Bristle! Nothing will get by our eyes! Whether it be by sky, land or sea! Isn't that right, Sentret?"

"That is correct, sir!" Sentret bounced up and saluted to the skies, "We are the watchers of Mount Bristle! Sky, land or sea, nothing gets past our gaze! Even though we're land – locked and no ocean is around us for miles! Huzzah!"

"Don't ruin our motto!" Patrat chided as he hit Sentret over the head again.

Blue glanced questioningly over to Rapta, who just shook his head and shrugged. Rapta walked up to the two tiny rodents and extended a wing, which practically dwarfed the pair.

"Hello, Patrat, Sentret," Rapta said, making the two jump in surprise, "do you remember me?"

"Ah! If it isn't honorable Rapta from Treasure Town!" Patrat said cheerfully as he energetically shook Rapta's wing, "Your crest is looking incredibly threatening as usual, I see!"

"Yes, well," Rapta replied, glancing over to his crest self – consciously, "I'm here on some important business, Patrat."

"Important business?!" Patrat practically jumped for joy when he heard that, "Oh, please, do tell us what kind of business you're on!"

"Yes, yes! Do tell!" Sentret echoed, also leaping up and down giddily. Rapta shook his head and glanced exasperatedly back at Blue, who just shrugged in reply.

"Alright, you two," Rapta said, after a lengthy sigh, "calm down, I have an important mission for you two to complete for us."

"A mission!?" Sentret's eyes widened in response, "This business is that important?!"

"It's called important business for a reason!"

"I knew that! I'm just surprised, sir!"

"Well I was surprised too!"

"I was more surprised, sir!"

"You cannot be more surprised than me!"

Rapta covered his face in his wings in frustration as the two rodents began to argue with each other again. It was always like this. Once one of them begins to argue, the other one snaps right back, perpetuating a cycle of wasted time. Blue, having heard enough out of the two, walked up and placed a paw on both their heads. After getting a good grasp on the fur on their heads, he pulled.

"Ow, sir! Ow ow ow!"

"Unhand me Riolu! This is improper conduct! Ow!"

Blue ignored their cries of pain as he suspended them in midair by the fur on their heads. He rotated them so that their teary eyes were staring directly at his own.

"If you two don't stop arguing and interrupting him, I'll give you both _demerits_, understand?" Blue smiled kindly at the pair, but his voice was low and threatening. The two of them quickly swallowed their words and nodded at the Riolu.

"That's good," Blue gave them another smile and dropped them onto the ground. Blue gestured to a stunned Rapta to continue before returning to his original spot behind the Staraptor.

"Um..." Rapta was secretly amazed by how quickly Blue managed to subdue the bickering pair. He quickly faked a cough to hide his surprise and recomposed himself. He faced the watcher pair, who were both sitting on the ground, rubbing their sore behinds.

"Patrat, Sentret," Rapta commanded, making the two quickly flinch and stand to attention, "we are in dire need of your expertise right now."

"Our expertise?" Patrat repeated, looking confused, "For what reason?"

Rapta gestured to Blue with his wing, "A young friend of this Pokémon has gone missing." Sentret gasped in surprise, making Patrat smack him for interrupting. Rapta ignored them and continued, "We believe that the Pokémon may have been kidnapped by another."

"Kidnapped?!" Sentret covered his mouth, looking horrified. Patrat mirrored Sentret's reaction as well, but quickly composed himself.

"We're not sure yet, but that's why we're here at your lookout." Rapta pointed at the large cliff they were standing on, "We need the use of your eyes to see out into the frontier and find them."

"That we can do, sir Rapta!" Sentret shouted, saluting the great crested bird respectfully, "Patrat and I form the greatest lookout in all of the frontier!"

"That is right, Sentret!" Patrat concluded, folding his arms and nodding, "Whatever goes on in the frontier, we are always the first to know!"

"Alright then," Rapta walked back and gestured for Blue to walk over. Blue nodded and stepped up toward the two scouts. They immediately flinched at the return of his presence, making Blue scratch the back of his head sheepishly.

"Blue, would you mind describing to these two the Pokémon we're looking for?" Rapta asked, shaking his head at the two trembling scouts.

Blue nodded and pointed a finger at the pair, startling them, "Listen up you two! And stop trembling!"

His commanding voice, coupled with the authoritative way he was acting made the two immediately stand up straight and grant him his full attention. Blue turned back and grinned at Rapta, who just shook his head in exasperation.

"Now, I need you two to tell me if you have seen either of these Pokémon," Blue quickly bent down and began to sketch a drawing on the rocky cliff floor. It turned out to be difficult, as the ground was composed mostly out of pure rock, making it nearly impossible for him to draw anything. Feeling embarrassed, Blue coughed and stood back up.

"Um, sir?" Sentret asked timidly, "If you just describe the Pokémon, we can easily figure it out ourselves without a drawing."

"Oh, alright then."

Blue coughed again into his paw, "I need you two to tell me if you have seen my friend, Azurill. She's young, small – probably your size –, mostly light blue and has a long black tail with a ball at the end. Have you seen her anywhere in the frontier?"

"Azurill?" Patrat narrowed his eyes and cupped his chin as he scoured his memory. Sadly, he shook his head after a moment of thought, "No, I haven't seen any Azurill wandering around in the forests around Treasure Town, and I doubt a young Azurill could wander all the way over to the highlands here."

"I haven't seen an Azurill either, sir!" Sentret added, "I haven't seen any Azurill in the lakes or the rivers, and definitely not in the sky!"

"I see..." Blue scratched his chin in frustration, "Okay, I have another question then."

Patrat and Sentret nodded in response, waiting patiently.

"Have you seen a large, yellow Pokémon? Kinda fat, has brown legs and a long, stretchy nose," Blue stretched out his eyes, "He's also got eyes like this, and talks really slowly as if he's always half asleep."

"Ah!" The two of them suddenly clapped their paws together and shared an excited glance.

"What?" Blue quickly said, surprised at their reaction, "Did you see someone like that?"

"Are you talking about Master Drowzee, sir?" Sentret replied gleefully, making Blue and Rapta widen their eyes in shock, "Because Master Drowzee's currently resting on this mountain, right now!"

* * *

"We're sorry, we haven't seen this Pokémon before."

I sighed and thanked the Dodrio as I rolled the posted back up. After the three – headed bird walked off, I shoved the poster back inside my torn – up bag and hoisted it onto my back. I turned around and walked back to Marill, who was looking at me expectantly.

"Sorry, no luck here either." I relayed to him sadly.

"I... I see, then let's move on..." He said in a weak, barely audible voice. He bent down to pick up a poster by his side, but his paws were quivering so hard that he accidentally dropped the rolled – up pieces of paper.

He gasped quietly and quickly tried to pick them back up, but the poster stubbornly rolled away from his grasping paws.

"Marill..." I took a step forward to go pick up the poster for him, but he suddenly sped up and scrambled after it. He snatched up the rolled up poster and, to my surprise, began to angrily crumple it up in his paws. Crackling noises exploded from the piece of paper as he furiously crushed the poster into a tiny wad of paper.

After he had sufficiently turned the poster into a tiny ball, he reared back and lobbed the wad into the air. I watched, a little afraid, as the paper ball sailed through the air before landing back onto the road, where it lied in the dirt, sad and pitiful looking.

"Fée... was it my fault? Was it?"

I jumped when I heard Marill's voice. It wasn't the same, sobbing voice that I became accustomed to. His voice sounded low and hollow, as if he had just given up on everything. I turned around and saw him staring at the paper ball, his face covered by a dark shadow.

Timidly, I took a step toward him and asked in a quiet voice, "What do you mean?"

Marill looked up and stared at the sky. A glistening stream of tears slipped down his cheeks as he spoke in a choked voice, "When I brought Azurill here to Treasure Town... I vowed to mother that I would take care of Azurill in her absence. I wanted to start a new life with my sister, to help her forget everything that we went through back in our old village."

He shook his head and closed his eyes, "At first, it was difficult. Every day, Azurill would refuse to talk or eat, no matter how much I begged her..."

"It was only after we met you that she finally broke out of her shell and became like how she was in the past... but even then, I still felt as though a part of her never returned."

"Every time I left home to work, I would always tell her to stay home and don't leave," He said in a guilty voice, "I know she hated being left alone in the house all the time... who wouldn't? She's just a kid, she just wanted to go out and play."

He slouched down and covered his face with his paws, but his voice rose ever louder, "But... I was afraid. I was afraid that if I let her out... that one day, when I got home, I wouldn't be able to see her face anymore. That I wouldn't be able to hear her say 'Welcome back, Marill!'"

"Fée... was I being selfish?" He uncovered his face and turned to me, his eyes pleading, begging me for an answer, "I never wanted her to be sad, to be angry like this... I've always worked hard so she would always be able to have something to eat, to have a home to stay in..."

"So why... why is she gone?!" I flinched as Marill suddenly shouted in a horrific tone. He clutched his eyes as his tears spilled onto the dirt, "What did I do wrong? Am I just a horrid brother? I... I just wanted her to be safe! I knew I could never replace mom in her heart, but I had to try! I had to...!"

"And now... she's gone..."

Suddenly, he slowly withdrew his paws from his eyes and stared blankly at them. A strange smile crossed his face as he sat there, unmoving. I took a nervous step forward, but suddenly, he said something that made me freeze.

"I... I understand now..." Marill closed his eyes and shook his head, "I'm just... a coward."

A sudden pang of emotion struck me in the chest when I heard him say that. I bit my lip as painful memories of yesterday began to flood back inside my mind. Didn't I say the exact same thing? I closed my eyes and tried to dismiss those thoughts, but Marill's words kept resounding inside of me like a loud, ringing bell.

"I could never bring myself to fully talk to Azurill about her problems. I've always been... too afraid to face her issues. Maybe... I haven't fully gotten over mother as well, and that made me distance myself from Azurill..."

Marill clasped his paws over his face again, "If we had never met you, Fée, I don't think Azurill would've ever recovered... and probably, nor would I." He grimaced and stared at me, "I was just... too much of a coward to face her. She resembles mother a lot... maybe too much..."

"So... that's why I kept burying myself in my work..." He cracked a small smile, "So I could avoid my only sister... I made excuses, saying that I was doing this for her own good. For her safety. And yet, now I realize..."

"It was only because I was a coward."

A strange emotion began to bubble up inside of me. Marill slowly looked toward me, his eyes were hollow and glassy. The sight of him like that made me feel... angry. At first, I didn't understand why I was getting angrier and angrier. But then, as I remembered my soujourn in the beach cave yesterday, I realized.

He was reminding me of myself. His actions, his words were a mirror of my own.

"_Don't...!_"

I raised up my paw and shouted loudly,

"_...call yourself a coward!_"

...I struck him as hard as I could, slapping him across the face and leaving a large paw print on his cheek.

"Fée?!" He yelped in pain as I withdrew my paw. As I glared angrily at him, I noticed the sheen of his eyes had returned back to normal.

"You're wrong!" I shook my head angrily.

"F – Fée?" I saw his eyes flash with a mixture of surprise and fear as I glared down at him.

"You're wrong..." Tears, my own tears began to slowly spill from my eyes as I recalled Azurill's words to me, "It's not your fault! It never was!"

"But.. but she said that she hated me...!"

I glared at him, making flinch and falter. I advanced toward him until our faces were but inches apart and shouted, "She never hated you, Marill! Listen to me!"

"You know what she said to me before you arrived?" I closed my eyes and recounted Azurill's words, "She says she loved you! She said... she didn't want you to be so worried about her all the time! She said that she hated seeing you come home tired and exhausted for her sake. She just wanted you to be her brother!"

"She... she said that?" Marill stared at me, his eyes filled with surprise and astonishment. Nodding, I released my grasp on his paws and slowly crawled off his body. Still looking stunned, Marill rolled back onto his feet and stared at me.

"Azurill wanted to grow up quick, you know," I said as I wiped away my own tears, "she knew how much you sacrificed for her, so she wanted to grow up as fast as she could so she could shoulder some of your burden for you."

"Azurill just wanted you to spend more time with her, as her brother," I held Marill's paws and looked directly into his eyes, "not as her caretaker, not as her surrogate mother... but just, as Marill. Her only brother."

Marill choked as he tried to say something, but he just couldn't find the words. I tugged on his paws and pulled him into a hug. At first he seemed surprised, but soon he completely broke down crying. He sobbed softly into my ruff, much like how his sister did before. Gently, I patted his back, comforting him as he slowly released his bottled up emotions.

"I... I never knew..."

* * *

Blue and Rapta goggled at the scouting pair in disbelief. Patrat and Sentret both looked strangely gleeful and proud of what they just announced.

"What do you mean by that?" Blue recovered first and challenged the two, "Master Drowzee's resting here? Explain!"

Patrat and Sentret looked startled by Blue's sudden shout, their proud smiles slipping off their faces like mud. Patrat nervously wrung his paws together, glancing left and right.

"Erm... approximately twenty minutes ago, Sentret and I were sitting on the cliff, having our midday rations," Patrat explained, looking to Sentret for confirmation. After receiving his partner's nod, he continued, "Then, from out of the blue, a large yellow Pokémon carrying a dirty sack just appeared out of thin air!"

"Thin... air?" Blue echoed, looking confused.

Sentret nodded and jumped into the conversation, "It's true sir!" He opened his arms wide and stood on his thick tail, "Master Drowzee just poofed into existence, sir! Patrat and I were very, very surprised by his sudden appearance, sir! We even dropped our berries down the cliff, sir!"

Patrat struck Sentret over the head again, making him shrink back down onto the ground. He chided his partner, "Too much information! Get to the point!"

"Yes sir!" Sentret replied, saluting. He faced Blue again and said, "The Pokémon – Master Drowzee – looked weary and requested that we grant him shelter until his strength returned for another um..." Sentret turned to Patrat with a questioning gaze, "what was it he said again, sir?"

Patrat folded his arms and said, "Master Drowzee wished for us to give him a private place of rest until he recuperated enough so he could use Teleport again, Sentret!"

"Oh yes, that's right!" Sentret clasped his paws together in admiration for Patrat, "Thank you sir!"

"Teleport... huh?" Rapta mused, contemplating the scouting pair's words. Blue turned and looked at Rapta questioningly.

"What's a teleport, Rapta?" He asked, looking confused.

Rapta looked a little surprised at Blue, but replied anyway, "Teleportation is an advanced technique that is mostly practiced by Pokémon that harbor psionic powers. Psychic Pokémon, for short." Rapta paused and rubbed his beak with his wing, "I suppose it wouldn't be too far of a stretch to assume that Drowzee would possess such an ability on top of his hypnosis."

"But, what is teleporting?" Blue pressed, still confused.

"Teleporting basically allows the user to instantly transport themselves from one location to another within a blink of an eye," Rapta explained patiently, "Imagine that you're standing here right now, and you wish to return to Treasure Town," Rapta pointed a wing at the town in the distance, "if you could teleport, then you could simply transport yourself back to the Main Plaza with that power."

"That's unbelievable!" He folded his arms and frowned, "Then there was no reason for him to go through the entrance at all! He could've just teleported away any time he wanted!"

"True, but there's one large limitation to teleportation," Rapta mused, pulling Blue's attention back, "if I remember correctly, most Pokémon that can teleport usually do it alone."

"Alone?"

Rapta nodded, "I remember Guildmaster Kadabra once stated that teleporting takes a large amount of concentration from the user's mind, and that transporting more than one Pokémon is insanely difficult, even for him."

Although Blue didn't know who this Kadabra was, he just nodded and allowed Rapta to continue.

"If this Drowzee was indeed exhausted upon reappearance..." Rapta suddenly trailed off. A light sparked inside his eyes. Rapta quickly turned his head toward Patrat and Sentret.

"You two, what did you say the Drowzee was carrying when he appeared?" He asked in a hurried voice. Patrat and Sentret quickly glanced at each other, startled.

Patrat answered first, "He was carrying a dirty sack on his person."

Sentret continued, "It looked heavy and difficult to carry, sir!" He nodded at Patrat, who returned the gesture, "When we attempted to assist him with his luggage, he suddenly became very angry toward us, sir!"

"Then it all fits!" Rapta exclaimed, surprising the other three Pokémon.

"What fits?" Blue quickly said, staring expectantly at the great crested bird.

Rapta shook his head and explained, "The sack that Drowzee is holding must be what he's using to keep your friend hidden while he moved through Treasure Town."

"I see..." Blue mumbled, "If anyone saw him carrying a sack, they would just think it contained his stuff."

Rapta nodded, "So once he got to a safe place in town, he could perform teleportation and escape outside."

"And no one would suspect him either," Blue growled angrily, "with all the Pokémon around in town, everyone would just disregard him as they walked past."

"Hold on sirs, what are you talking about?" Sentret asked, looking confused, "The way you're describing Master Drowzee makes him sound like a criminal!"

"That's right!" Patrat added, "When Drowzee arrived, he was polite and very honorable! We will not stand for the besmirching of a Pokémon that we so graciously provided shelter and hospitality for!"

Blue sent a glare at Patrat, making him flinch and shut his mouth.

"Patrat, I need you to tell me where Drowzee is," Rapta said in a grave voice, "I do not know what Drowzee may have said to you, but we believe that Drowzee may be the kidnapper we talked about earlier."

"Proof then! Show me the evidence!" Patrat retorted.

"The evidence is his exhaustion upon arriving to your lookout," Rapta replied, "teleportation is not a difficult task by any means... if one performs it alone."

"Within that sack he carried," Blue said, folding his arms, "must be another Pokémon." Blue gritted his teeth and added in a low voice, "...my friend."

"What?!" Both Patrat and Sentret looked astonished.

"He appeared on your cliff, holding a suspicious bag that he refuses to let you see or even touch, and demands that you give him a private place to rest..." Blue conjectured, "Doesn't that seem suspicious to you?"

"I – if you put it that way, sir..." Sentret replied uneasily, glancing nervously at Patrat.

"Baseless!" Patrat retorted as he pointed a finger at Blue, "Baseless conjecture! How do we know you're not lying?"

Blue growled angrily, making Patrat falter slightly. But the little chipmunk shook his head and retained his vigil.

"Patrat," Rapta said in a sharp tone, "this Pokémon has my confidence. Do you not trust me as well?"

With a graceful flourish, Rapta pulled out a tiny, gleaming object from within his feathers. He flashed the object at Patrat and Sentret proudly.

"I am Rapta, third – in – command of Machoke's Guild. This badge of mine proves my authority, and with that authority, I speak with full confidence that what this Riolu is saying is true."

"An explorer's badge!" Patrat and Sentret were awed by the shining badge on Rapta's wing. Then, the two of them quickly stood up straight and saluted the great crested bird.

"I – we understand your authority, honorable Rapta!" Patrat stated in a respectful voice, "Please forgive us for doubting you!"

"Very well," Rapta, looking pleased with himself, put his badge away and winked at Blue. "Such frivolities tend to be convenient, don't you think?" He whispered humorously to the Riolu, who nodded and smiled.

Clearing his throat, Rapta addressed the scouting pair again, "Now, we believe that this Master Drowzee may be a dangerous kidnapper. We are here to arrest this criminal, and we require your full cooperation, Patrat, Sentret."

Patrat and Sentret hurriedly saluted the bird again.

"Y – yes, of course sirs!" Sentret spoke in an enthusiastic voice, "We will gladly take you to the criminal!"

"If you are absolutely sure that Master Drowzee is a criminal," Patrat nodded, "then we have no reason to doubt you, honorable Rapta!"

"Alright then," Rapta extended a wing and shoved Blue forward, "take him along with you to Drowzee, but do not reveal yourselves."

"Huh?" Blue quickly turned around and gazed at Rapta, "You're not coming?"

"No," Rapta shook his crested head, "I must return to Treasure Town and report our findings to the guild and to the Sheriff."

The bird pointed at the skies, "It's much faster for me to return on my own," Rapta noticed the look on Blue's face, "Do not worry, I will return with help. But for now, I require you to keep an eye on the criminal."

"If possible," Rapta rubbed his beak with his wing, "do not engage him in combat until I have returned with assistance. There is a possibility that he could escape on his own, without his captive. If that happens, it might be difficult to find him again." Rapta noticed the unhappy look on Blue's face and added, "If what Patrat and Sentret said is true, Drowzee is most likely exhausted and incapable of teleporting away with his captive for a while. It'll be simple for you to just watch him until I return."

"Alright Rapta," Blue nodded, but still looked unconvinced, "I'll keep an eye on him."

The great crested bird nodded in return and spread his wings. With a powerful flap, Rapta launched himself back into the air. After giving Blue one last glance, he turned around and soared back toward Treasure Town. Blue watched as the gray bird slowly shrunk into the distance. Once Rapta was out of sight, he turned around and faced the scouting pair.

"Patrat, Sentret," He commanded, "take me to Drowzee now, but don't alert him of our presence."

"Yes sir!" Sentret said, giving him a quick salute. Patrat followed suit, saluting respectfully at the Riolu. Blue nodded and the three proceeded deeper into the mountain.

* * *

Drowzee snorted as he roused himself from his sleep. He grumbled in annoyance as he pushed his rotund body off the floor. Slowly, he scanned his surroundings. He had slept inside of a small, rocky alcove. Tall, rocky walls surrounded him from all sides, providing him with perfect privacy. The only places in the alcove that were exposed was the small crack in the wall that he had used – with great difficulty – as an entrance, and the lack of a ceiling.

But it didn't matter to Drowzee, as all he needed was a little more rest and he can get back on the road. A dirty grin appeared on his face as his eyes fell upon the small, grimy sack in the corner of the room. Waddling over to the sack, he prodded the lump that protruded from the center. The lump wriggled and made a quiet, muffled noise.

"Heheh..." Drowzee couldn't help but snicker darkly as he watched the sack shudder futilely.

It wasn't exactly easy to escape from town with such a prize. At first, he thought that sneaking into Treasure Town was a complete waste of time. There were so many Pokémon wandering around, that it made it difficult for him to make a move. But, to his delight, a wonderful little gift managed to run directly into him without Drowzee even needing to lift a finger.

No wonder they called the place Treasure Town! Treasures just fall into your lap without any effort!

Drowzee picked up the sack and opened it up.

"Mmmph!" The little captive inside tried to scream, but the thick, yellow ropes binding her mouth and legs prevented her from making any noise louder than a muffled cry. Drowzee stared down at the terrified Pokémon with perverse glee.

It's been so long since he's been able to call any of his heists a success. At Post Town, his plans were foiled by a group of annoying brats. Unity City, he nearly found himself captured at the hands of the authorities. And Spring Town had no targets for him at all, just a buncha old, strong Pokémon lounging around.

Drowzee felt a wave of nausea rise inside of him as he thought about his past failures. He quickly dismissed the thought and looked back down at the bag. He didn't need to think about his past mistakes, as he now had proof that he did succeed. Right inside this bag.

Feeling eager, he held the bag upside down and shook the contents out as if it was a laundry bag. The poor little Pokémon tumbled out and bounced off the hard floor painfully. Drowzee quickly picked her up, afraid that she might've been damaged by the fall. Fortunately, all she had on her was another bruise. The first came from him, of course. He had to shut her up somehow.

"Eeheheh..." Another creepy, perverse laugh came flowing out of his mouth as he leered at his prize.

"Mmmph...!" She tried struggling against the ropes again, wriggling, shaking, but there was no point. Drowzee made those ropes himself with his psychic powers. It was a skill he had long thought was worthless, but now, he understood the sheer potential that a disabling wrap could have.

"Don't bother..." He said, making his captive freeze at the sound of his voice. Oh, such a reaction made Drowzee feel so gleeful inside. He quashed a desire to laugh and said, "these ropes will only break... when I want them to... so save your strength..."

"Mmmphhh!" Salty tears streamed down the little Pokémon's face as she struggled even more. Drowzee frowned. Didn't he just say that she should stop struggling? He hated it when others disobeyed his words. Such disobedience should be punished.

He raised up his other hand and balled it into a fist. His captive saw the fist and froze in fear.

"That's better..." Drowzee said, grinning cruelly as he revelled in the Pokémon's expression. A pleasurable tingle of excitement exploded inside of Drowzee's body. It was an amazing feeling, to finally be stronger than another! It was an intoxicating feeling that Drowzee wanted experience more and more.

His fist hovered over the captive's face. If he struck the girl, would she show him an even pleasurable expression? He just couldn't wait. He had to try!

"Mmmph!" The look in her eyes, the fear, the horror, he wanted more! He swung his fist forward!

"_You_ _bastaaaaaaard_!"

Suddenly, he felt his weighty body become airborne. His vision of the room became strangely sideways. Then, a painful shock exploded from the left side of his head right before he hit the ground.

"Gaaah!" He let out a loud, pained scream as his head crashed into the rocky floor. His eyes were spinning, his mind felt scrambled and disjointed as he desperately tried to figure out what just happened. He was about to punch the girl, but why... why did it feel like he was the one punched instead?!

"It's alright, don't cry. I'm here now, don't worry."

That voice... he recognized that voice! It belonged to that blasted Riolu that got in his way earlier today! A searing anger raged around inside of him as he recalled that incident. He struggled to pull himself off the ground, but his balance was marred by that sudden blow.

How dare that Riolu interfere again! Drowzee raged as he slowly regained his sense of balance. He pulled his round body off the ground and turned around, his narrow eyes burning in anger.

"Sir! The criminal is back up!"

Drowzee's eyes snapped to the source of the voice. It was those two little Pokémon that provided him this sanctuary. They must have betrayed him! Drowzee's anger reached a boiling point as he glared at the sight in front of him.

That Riolu was glaring back at him while cracking his knuckles. Who does he think he is?

"You... Riolu..." His voice dripped with venom as he addressed the invader, "How dare you... once again..."

His words were disjointed, interrupted every so often by his own anger. Sparks exploded inside of his mind as he fumed at the blue – furred Pokémon.

"I'll make you pay... you will regret this...!"

* * *

Xatu wandered the streets of Treasure Town alone. His emotions felt drained, and his soul felt fragmented. He had just spent the better part of the last few minutes raging and despairing at himself, wallowing in his sorrow and guilt.

In his mind, he kept replaying the scene between him and the Riolu over and over again. He kept asking himself questions about what he could have done. He kept wondering what would've happened if he had just stopped and listened instead of trying to force his own ideas on the boy.

The look of betrayal on the Riolu's face, the shame he felt when he finally understood the boy's situation, and the subsequent realization of his selfishness and worthlessness completely drained any sense of self worth he had inside of him.

As he dragged his feet along the dusty roads of Treasure Town, he came across a wad of paper on the ground. The ball rolled forlornly in the dirt, too heavy to be carried away by the wind, yet too light to stay still. The indecisiveness of such an object made Xatu close his eyes despondently.

Who was he? He was a Xatu. A bird of prophecies and prediction. He was raised upon stories of his ancestors describing calamities and subsequently preventing them with their predictions. But what has he done? He was born without such a miraculous gift, yet he was placed on such a high pedestal.

Xatu opened his eyes again and saw the little paper wad. It had barely moved an inch, shunted aside by the winds, before rolling back to its original position.

Xatu always wanted to be like his ancestors. He wanted to be useful, wanted like they were. But, every time he closed his eyes, all he could see was black. He couldn't see the future, he couldn't see the past, and he couldn't even see the present. He was like the paper ball. He couldn't move forward or backward. All he could do was struggle in the same place, over and over again.

He bent down to pick up the paper ball. But, as he extended his wing, he noticed the patch of missing feathers on it.

That Riolu truly believed he had the power to see. The Riolu had hoped that such a power could help him with his problems.

Xatu wondered. What if he did have the power to see? What if he could've helped the boy?

"Ahh!" Suddenly, he was jarred out of his thoughts by a girl's cry. He quickly looked up and saw a young Eevee and a Marill standing in front of him. The Eevee quickly ran up and picked up the wadded paper ball with her mouth. She dropped in a small, worn looking pink bag and gave Xatu an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry, that's ours," She said, bowing, "I'm sorry for littering!"

"No... no it's alright," Xatu quickly replied, nonplussed, "I don't mind."

The Eevee stared at him for a second, her head tilted to the side as if she was thinking about something. Xatu was beginning to feel uncomfortable as she continued to silently look at him.

"Um... can I help you?" He decided to finally break the silence and ask. The Eevee's eyes widened in surprise as he did so.

"Oh, um, I'm sorry for staring," She said quickly, realizing her tactlessness, "It's just, you're Xatu, right?"

"Y... yes, I am Xatu."

The Eevee looked over to her friend for a moment before turning back. She sighed and shook her head. Then, she stared directly at Xatu with a confident look on her face.

"Mr. Xatu, do you mind if I ask for a favor from you?" She said in a completely serious voice.

"A favor?"

The Eevee nodded and said, "I've... I've read in a book before that Xatu possess the ability to see many things with their eyes, whether it be something far, far away or even something in the future."

Xatu suddenly felt his insides turn ice cold. Of all times for a customer to appear, did it have to be now? He gulped nervously as the Eevee, evidently unaware of his internal dilemma, continued to speak.

"My friend... his sister went missing a while ago," She said, gesturing over to the Marill, "If it isn't any trouble, we'd like you to use your powers to find her for us."

"W... what?"

It all felt surreal to Xatu. Here, right in front of him, stood a Pokémon that was asking him to do the exact same thing that the Riolu had. At first, he didn't know what to think. His instincts told him to decline, to formulate some bogus excuse that he couldn't. Maybe he could just teleport away while the two of them were distracted, or perhaps he could instigate some sort of ridiculous monetary payment for his services.

But, the Riolu's face suddenly flashed inside his mind, and along with it, a renewed sense of guilt. He nearly retched at his own instincts telling him to scam the two in front of him. Why was that the first thought that came to his mind? Why did he have to think that way?

Why couldn't he just help?

"Sir...?"

The Eevee gazed imploringly at him. She needed his help, just like the Riolu did. Was he selfish enough to refuse the same thing twice? But... even if he did try to help, what can he do? He lacked the power of sight, the Eevee would've had better luck begging help from a rock!

But, as he looked back at the Eevee and the Marill, he could see the hope and expectation laden in their eyes. Could he betray them now like he did before?

He had to at least try. Even if still saw nothing. Even if he had to let them down, at least he had to try.

"Very... very well," Xatu said hesitantly, "I... I will try to find Azurill for you."

"Wow..." The Eevee sounded impressed as well as a little surprised, "I didn't even need to tell you that we were looking for an Azurill...!"

Xatu recoiled. He had accidentally let the name of the Pokémon slip out of his mouth, but it didn't seem to matter. Xatu nodded and closed his eyes.

Black. All he could see was black. Inwardly, he sighed. What was he expecting? For years now, he tried and tried to access the same powers that his ancestors possessed, and failed time and time again. No matter what he did, all he could see was the same black canvas. Black, murky and most of all, worthless.

Like him.

Xatu felt a sense of disappointment within him. Even now, all he could do was let other down. He imagined the looks on the Eevee and Marill's faces as he prepared to tell them that he couldn't see anything. Their looks of despair... of betrayal...

Subconsciously, he felt the bald spot on his wing again. Their looks of betrayal... just like that Riolu's. No, he didn't want to see those faces again. He didn't want to continue living this way, to keep disappointing others and having to continue living his life as a lie.

He began to plead, to beg his ancestors for help. If possible, grant him just a trickle of their powers. So he could at least help the Pokémon standing before him! He begged them, just for now, to grant him the power of a Xatu so he could help others! Not for himself, no, but for someone else!

Suddenly, an incredible spark of pain erupted inside of his skull. His beak opened wide as he squawked out in pain. He had never felt this sort of severe agony before. It was like somebody had taken a mallet and began to pound a massive drum inside of his head!

"Mr. Xatu!"

He could hear the concerned cries from the Pokémon in front of him. Xatu wanted to open his eyes and say something, but it was as if his eyes had been glued shut. He covered his face with his wings, trying desperately to release himself from the suffering.

Then... all of a sudden, the blackness vanished. A blinding light suddenly shone down from above him. Xatu was confused, his eyes were still closed, yet it felt like he was suddenly thrust into a brightened world. He stood in the center of some sort of rocky cavern, yet he could still see light streaming down from above. A small voice suddenly began to speak inside his mind. It sounded strange, yet familiar to him.

"Mount Bristle..."

Mount Bristle? Was this where he was? Suddenly, a small pebble whizzed past his face, just barely missing his beak. He quickly turned around and saw a horrifying sight. It was the Riolu, heavily injured and barely alive, suspended in the air by some kind of invisible force. Then, just beyond where the Riolu was, stood a wounded Drowzee.

It didn't take long for Xatu to realize what was going on. The Riolu had discovered the location of the Drowzee, and immediately charged in to fight. Unfortunately, he had somehow been overpowered and was now at the brink of being defeated.

Xatu opened his beak to say something, anything to try and protect the Riolu. But, another sudden pain inside of his head forced him down to the ground. The bright world around him shattered, returning him to the black void.

"...atu! Mr. Xatu!"

He could hear the Eevee's voice again. Had he returned to Treasure Town? His head was still pounding, but the pain had lessened enough for him to refocus himself. Tentatively, he opened his eyes and saw the Eevee and the Marill holding him. He must've fallen onto the ground during the vision.

"Oh, thank goodness you're alright!" The Eevee cried out, relieved, "I was afraid that you might've fainted!"

Xatu groggily watched as she shook her head worriedly, "I promise to never ask someone for visions or anything like that ever again... it's too dangerous!"

Xatu couldn't understand what she meant by that. As he slowly pulled himself back onto his feet, his mind slowly came to the realization about what just happened. He had a vision. He saw something. Xatu glanced down at his wings in shock.

For the first time since he hatched from his egg, since he evolved from a young Natu, he had a vision.

He shook his head. Now wasn't the time to celebrate such things. The vision and the voice was still clear inside his mind. That Riolu was in danger, and now, he had the ability to prevent it.

"Eevee, are you acquainted with a Riolu?" Xatu said, his voice gravely serious. The Eevee looked stunned for a second, but she quickly composed herself and nodded.

"I'm afraid... that Riolu's life is currently in severe danger."

A horrified look appeared on the Eevee's face. She quickly ran up to the Xatu and grasped his wings and begged, "What do you mean? Please, tell me what happened to Blue!"

"He tried to rescue the Azurill on his own against a Drowzee," Xatu explained, gently letting the Eevee down, "but he was overwhelmed by the Drowzee's psychic powers."

"Then... where is he? Did you see where they were?!" The Eevee pleaded in a desperate voice, "Please, tell me!"

"They're currently fighting at Mount Bristle," Xatu replied, remembering the oddly familiar voice he heard. The Eevee's face fell when she heard that. It's no surprise, Mount Bristle's miles and miles away from Treasure Town, separated by acres of wood and hill.

"Is... is there any way I can go and help him?" The Eevee spoke in a quiet voice, "I... he's my friend... I need to go help him!"

The Eevee stared up at Xatu, desperately pleading to him, "Please, Xatu! Tell me, is there any way I can go and help Blue?"

Xatu closed his eyes and began to think about all the possible actions he could take. Out of the hundreds that filled his mind, one answer stood out from the rest. Although he had his reservations about such an option, he knew that he couldn't just back out.

"I have a way," Xatu spoke confidently. He bent down and grasped the Eevee's right paw with his wings and stared at her straight in the eyes.

"I can teleport one of you straight there, right in the midst of their battle. Are you alright with this?"

Fear flashed across the Eevee's face for a split second. But, she quickly shook her head and put on a confident, brave face. She turned around and looked at Marill, who was nervously fidgeting behind everyone.

"Marill, I'll be leaving to rescue Blue and Azurill," The Eevee said with a shaky voice, "Please, go to the sheriff's that Drowzee is at Mount Bristle."

"But, Fée...!" Marill said in a scared voice, "What if you get hurt?"

The Eevee – Fée – fell silent for a second as she mulled over his words. She shook her head and smiled at Marill.

"Don't worry," She said in a strong voice, "He's... Blue's already gotten hurt once for my sake, and now for Azurill's. I can't back off just because I'm... afraid of getting hurt!"

"Because..." Fée raised her head and shouted confidently, "I'm not a coward anymore!"

With that, Fée turned toward Xatu and nodded confidently. Xatu, a little surprised by her sudden outburst, nodded back and held out his wings around Fée's body. He closed his eyes and envisioned the same place he saw in his vision. The rocky cavern, the sunlight from the sky, the vines on the walls...

Then, within a bright flash of light, the two of them vanished.


	13. Can I be selfish for a little bit?

**• ****  
Chapter 13:**

**"Can I be selfish for a little bit?"**

A few minutes earlier, Blue and the scouting pair had sneaked toward Drowzee's abode. Patrat told Blue that they allowed Drowzee to rest inside a small, open – air cavern that provided fairly decent privacy, as it was surrounded by tall cliffs on all sides. Furthermore, for added privacy, the only way to enter the chamber was by the means of a small, barely noticeable crack in the wall.

When they reached said crack, Blue was both impressed and annoyed at the same time. The crack truly was barely noticeable. It was surrounded by thickset vines and covered by moss and other leafy growths. If Patrat and Sentret haven't shown it to him, he probably would've never been able to find it by himself.

Blue brushed aside the vines and the leaves, taking great care to keep his actions as silent as possible. The crack in the wall was just barely wide enough for a Pokémon of his size to crawl through, making him a little puzzled as to how such a heavyset Pokémon like Drowzee could've squeezed inside. Blue shook his head and dismissed that pointless train of thought.

Inside was a decently sized alcove, much larger than Blue expected. He surmised that it was probably just a little smaller than the sunny resting chambers he and Fée found in the cave on the beach. As he peered inside, he saw Drowzee pacing around, grumbling and mumbling something inaudible to himself. Then, he saw the rotund Pokémon bend down and fumble with something in the corner of the room.

He craned his head around the crack, trying to get a better view while still keeping his profile as unnoticeable as possible. Once he found the perfect angle, he spotted the object that the Drowzee was touching. His eyes narrowed as he stared a the large, dirty sack lying on the ground. A small lump was protruding out from the center of the bag.

Azurill was definitely inside that sack, he thought. There was no doubt in his mind at all. Anger filled his body as he watched the disgusting Pokémon prod the sack as if it was a toy. He wanted to rush in, he wanted to slug that creep right in the face. But, he remembered what Rapta said.

_Do not engage him in combat. He could get away._

Blue knew that if Drowzee managed to get away, even without Azurill, he could always just teleport back and attempt another kidnapping. There was wisdom in the bird's words, and Blue knew it. But even knowing that, he couldn't help but feel frustrated at his inability to do anything but watch.

Everything changed, however, once the Drowzee lifted up the sack and revealed what was inside. As he suspected, Azurill tumbled out and struck the ground like a rag doll. Blue grit his teeth as he watched the poor little girl roll around pitifully on the rocky floor. Her body was bound by some sort of yellow rope, making it impossible for her to move or scream.

He could only watch in silent fury as Drowzee picked her up like a toy. The Drowzee laughed in the little girl's face, sneering gleefully and enjoying her helplessness. It took all of Blue's self – restraint to hold himself back.

But, even that wasn't enough once he saw Drowzee prepare to punch Azurill.

His anger hit the breaking point. What little self – restraint he had shattered into a thousand pieces as his fury overtook his reason. The words that Rapta told him flew out of his mind as he grabbed the side of the crack.

"Sir!"

"Riolu!"

He couldn't even hear the scouting pair's panicked cries. With a furious snarl, he tore into the chamber and ran toward Drowzee, flames of anger burning in his eyes. Drowzee didn't even notice the intruder until Blue was already right up in his face.

Blue drew back his right arm and bellowed ferociously, "_You bastaaaaard!_"

He put all his anger, his hatred for the psychic Pokémon into his fist as he sent his punch rocketing forward. His fist slammed into the side of Drowzee's head, causing a loud _bam!_ to echo around the chamber. The sheer force behind the punch managed to lift the heavyset Pokémon off his feet and send him spiraling through the air.

Azurill made a muffled scream as Drowzee's grasp on her slackened. Blue quickly reached forward and caught her before she hit the ground.

"Mmph?!" Azurill cried out in surprise as she saw the bottom of the Riolu's face. Blue looked down at the sobbing girl and gave her a gentle smile.

"It's alright, don't cry," Blue said, gently patting the crying girl on the head, "I'm here now. You don't have to worry anymore." He gave her a comforting hug to calm her down, but still kept an eye on the dazed Drowzee.

"Patrat, Sentret," Blue commanded, making the two scouting Pokémon pop their heads out from behind the crack in the wall, "come here and take Azurill away."

"Sir, what do you mean?" Sentret asked, eyeing the Drowzee warily as he entered the chamber. Blue knelt and patted Azurill on the head before giving the little Pokémon over to the scouting pair.

"I made a mistake," Blue said as he turned back around, "Rapta didn't want us to reveal ourselves until he returned with help."

"Drowzee may be able to get away now," Blue clenched his right fist, "But, I wont let that happen. I'll make sure he's out cold before Rapta returns."

"Sir, the criminal is back up!" Sentret announced loudly as he saw the yellow Pokémon stagger back onto his feet.

"I'll be fine," Blue said confidently as he walked toward them. He placed Azurill at the foot of the crack and gestured for the scouting pair to take her away. Then, he turned back around and cracked his knuckles menacingly.

"I'll make sure he pays!"

Immediately, Blue kicked off the floor and dived toward Drowzee with his fist outstretched. His attack struck the psychic Pokémon square in the snout, and sent the pudgy Drowzee sliding backward a few paces. Not about to let up just yet, Blue ducked low and followed up with a hefty uppercut to the Drowzee's jaw. The powerful upward blow forced Drowzee's upper body up into the air.

Then, Blue clasped his paws together and raised them above his head. With a hearty shout, he drove his clenched paws down like swinging an axe. Drowzee's body was bent down from the blow, forming a strange upside – down U shape right before he collapsed to his knees. The yellow Pokémon gasped in pain and clutched the sides of his head.

"Grrahhhghhh...!" An unearthly groan escaped Drowzee's throat as he felt the pain ravage his body. With great exertion, he swung his gaze up at the Riolu, who was standing stock still and glaring back at him.

"Had enough?" Blue said, folding his arms together. Drowzee opened his mouth to reply, but a burning sensation at the back of his throat forced him to quickly shut his mouth, lest he release something more solid than curse words.

Blue took this chance to leap backwards. He held his arms to his side, fists still clenched and ready. Slowly, he gathered all the energy he had left inside his body and funneled them into his paws. This was the finishing blow. With all his strength, he'll knock out the Drowzee with his next strike! Tensing the muscles in his legs, he bent down low and dashed forward.

"Take this!" Blue shouted as he thrust both of his fists forward for a powerful double – barreled punch. However, the impact he expected never happened. Instead, Blue saw his suddenly fists stop right before they hit Drowzee in the face, as if he had hit some sort of strange, invisible wall.

He tried to strike Drowzee again with a quick punch, but the same result occurred. His fist was once again stopped by some sort of invisible field!

"Don't get cocky...!" Drowzee's voice was cracking, his breathing was shallow and ragged. Slowly, he raised his head, shooting Blue a furious glare. He stuck out his arms at Blue, palms open and fingers extended.

Mesmerizingly, Drowzee began to move his arms up in down in a snake – like fashion while keeping his eyes on the Riolu. An evil sneer appeared on Drowzee's face as an odd, purple glow began to cover the length of his arms.

"So you thought you could just... punch a Pokémon with psychic powers...?" He drawled, sniggering at Blue's futile attempts to punch him again, "You are... quite a fool...!"

Drowzee's eyes flashed a violent purple as he abruptly stopped the serpentine movement of his arms. At that instant, an invisible force exploded between Drowzee and Blue, blasting the Riolu away. Blue's eyes widened as he suddenly found himself being driven away from Drowzee at a high speed. He quickly dug his paws into the floor, stopping his backward movement.

"What...?!" He gasped in surprise, glaring incredulously at Drowzee, who had resumed his snake – like arm movements.

"You're... so foolish...!" Drowzee sniggered gleefully as his eyes gleamed with delight at the Riolu's surprise, "To think... you thought you had a chance against... me!"

Blue snarled indignantly and charged forward again, breaking into a dash and preparing to slug Drowzee in the face again. Drowzee, however, just shook his head and sneered. The psychic Pokémon extended his arms out to his side as the purple blow began to coalesce around his palms.

"This'll... give you quite a shock...!"

Suddenly, two spherical explosions of purple emitted from his palms. Blue halted his advance and covered his face, expecting another powerful force to strike him. However, no such force came. Blue cautiously peered out from behind his guard, wondering what happened.

"Heeh... heheheh...!" Drowzee's entire body had gained a bright, neon purple outline. He shoved his pudgy arms forward, palms facing Blue. Blue kept his arms over his face, waiting for an invisible impact to hit him.

All of a sudden, his head was jerked forward as a sharp impact struck him from behind. Blue let out a yelp of pain as he quickly spun around to see the assailant. But, there was nothing behind him at all.

"Ehhhehehh... what are you looking at?"

Blue turned back around at the sound of Drowzee's voice. Right as he did so, a small projectile struck him between the eyes, blasting his head backward. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a small pebble clattering onto the ground. The Riolu leapt backward again and touched his face with his paw. When he withdrew it, he saw that his paw was covered in a smattering of red.

"What...?!" Blue shouted out of surprise. Then, he felt a strange vibration around him, followed by a cacophony of loud, clattering sounds. Blue quickly spun around and saw an incredible sight.

Pebbles of all shapes and sizes were trembling on the rocky floor, creating an absolutely awful din. Slowly, every shard, fragment and chunk of rock began to hover off the ground. They rose several inches into the air before suspending themselves as if they were tied to invisible puppet strings.

"What is this?" Blue suddenly found himself surrounded by an entire army of tiny, jagged stones. All of which were now pointed directly at him.

"This... this is my power, you fool...!" Drowzee shouted in a ragged voice, "I'm... I'm strong... and you're just a weakliiiiiiing!"

Drowzee forcefully clapped his hands together. Immediately, every pebble closed in on Blue at an alarming speed. Given nearly no time to react, Blue hastily ran away.

"You can't escape...!" Drowzee began to wave his arms like a conductor at an orchestra, directing the stones around the chamber. The cloud of pebbles clacked and clattered against each other as they zoomed toward the escaping Riolu in a swarm.

Blue attempted to parry as many rocks as he could while he ran, batting away pebbles and stones with his paws. But for every stone he deflected with his fists, two more took its place. Eventually, he just couldn't keep up with the onslaught of rocks. A single pebble snuck past his guard and stuck him squarely in the side. Blue gasped in pain as he tumbled to the ground. As soon as he fell, the horde of rocks were upon him.

Stone after stone struck his body mercilessly, creating stinging welts all over his arms and legs. He let loose a roar of pain as an unending rain of pebbles clattered against his injured right leg, sending him crashing down onto the stone floor as more and more rocks struck his body.

Defiantly, he continued to swat at the flying stones, but it served little to no purpose, as the rocks just maneuvered around his fists and struck at his body.

"Hehh... so this is all you got...?" Blue could hear Drowzee's mocking voice over the hail of pebbles, "Did you think you were some sort of... great hero...?"

A particularly large and jagged stone struck Blue's forehead as Drowzee finished his sentence. The wound on his forehead worsened considerably, as Blue felt a trickle of red spill down his face.

"Did you think... just because you were brave... that you could rush into any situation... and win?!" Drowzee shouted shrilly as he sent another wave of rocks cascading toward the Riolu, "Defeat... defeat the villain... and rescue the princess... what a laugh!"

Drowzee conjured up more pebbles and raised up his arms, "I'll show you... that this world has no heroes..."

Blue closed his eyes and endured the avalanche of pebbles that crashed down on him.

"There's only... the strong... and... the _weak!_"

"So give... give up!" Drowzee's breathing became more and more ragged as he slammed another wave of pebbles onto the fallen Riolu, "I'm the strong... I'm the strong one now... and you're the weak! You're weak!"

Suddenly, the pebbles all clattered onto the ground, released from their invisible puppet strings. Blue weakly opened an eye and saw that Drowzee had bent over, clutching his knees as he tried to catch his breath.

"I'll... I'll..." The purple outline began to reform around Drowzee's body as he raised up one of his arms, "I'll... show you all... that I'm no longer... a weakling...!"

Blue felt a strange sensation on his right arm. A faint, purple glow began to surround his limb as Drowzee stood back up. All of a sudden, he was yanked up into the air by the same invisible force that controlled the pebbles. He hung in the air like a limp doll, suspended by invisible strings on his right arm.

"Haah... haah..." Sweat poured from Drowzee as he struggled to keep the Riolu in the air with his mind. He stared at the Riolu with gleeful eyes. Blue's arms and legs were covered in tiny bruises and cuts. His face was marred by a stream of blood coming from his forehead, staining his blue fur with a streak of red. Drowzee sneered blithely and said, "Look at you... so... so stupid looking and..."

He paused to catch his breath, accidentally allowing Blue to slip from the air slightly. Drowzee quickly realized his mistake and refocused himself, pulling the Riolu back up into his puppet – like pose. Drowzee quickly looked back up at the Riolu with a victorious smile on his face.

"What... what's with that look on your face...?"

He felt as though his grin was wiped off his face. The Riolu didn't look defeated at all, in fact, he looked the complete opposite. The Riolu's eyes were still alive, and they were still glaring daggers at him. He still wanted to fight, despite his helpless and ragged form...!

"You... you're mocking me...!" Drowzee raged, "Just... just like everyone else...!"

The yellow Pokémon's eyes fell onto the Riolu's injured right leg. A cruel thought ran through the Drowzee's mind. He smirked as he held his right arm forward, forcing the Riolu's right leg to levitate up along with his arm.

"Your leg... I see that it's still... injured..." He sneered, remembering the Riolu's weakness from earlier in the day, "How about... I tear it off... for you...?"

That should do it. That will wipe that disgusting look off the Riolu's face. He saw the Riolu's head slump down. No Pokémon in the world should be able to withstand such a potent threat! He'll have the Riolu begging him for mercy soon enough!

"...go ahead."

"What...?!" Drowzee was taken aback, "What did you just say?

"Are you deaf...? I said, go ahead!"

Blue snapped his head back up and shot Drowzee a fiery glare. He opened his mouth, baring his fangs at his captor.

"If you tear off my leg, then I'll just go and take it back from you!" He snarled back furiously, "I'll even go one further, I'll use my leg as a club and knock you out with it!"

Blue struggled ferociously against his invisible bindings, snarling and roaring as he attempted to break the ethereal ropes attached to his arm and leg. He sent another ferocious glare at Drozee, "Come on, you coward!"

Drowzee took a step backward, fear and surprise shining in his eyes.

He hadn't expected that kind of response from the Riolu. After all, who would?! What kind of mad Pokémon would willing give up a leg in this kind of situation?

"You... you're bluff... you're bluff..." Drowzee choked on his words. He felt a strange resonance inside his mind. Every time Blue struggled against his psychic bindings, he felt as if someone had punched him in the face. Waves and waves of unfamiliar energy rushed out of the Riolu, slamming into Drowzee like a tidal wave.

"No... no..." Drowzee's eyes widened out of fear as he raised up his right arm, "You're... you're supposed to be the weak one... and I'm the strong one!"

Drowzee stared at the Riolu with terror in his eyes. Why was he afraid of someone who he had already rendered helpless? Why was his eyes still alive when the rest of his body was in tatters? Drowzee just couldn't understand. He was the strong one and the Riolu was weak! The Riolu should've been just like him in the past! This didn't make any sense!

His hand hovered in the air, twitching and trembling. Blue stared silently at Drowzee, his eyes daring the psychic Pokémon to clench his fist.

"You... I'm... I don't...!" Drowzee's words became slurred and incomprehensible. His mind was nearing its limit. He couldn't continue to hold the Riolu and the legion of stones for much longer. He had to do something now!

"Uraaaaaaaaghh!" He released a strained – sounding groan, spreading his purple aura around his body. Immediately, Blue's body began to levitate higher and higher. Eventually, the Riolu was elevated to the top of the cavern.

"I... I wont hear anymore words out of you...!" Drowzee grunted with exertion as he twisted his arms around. A sneer appeared on Drowzee's face as he watched Blue's body slowly rotate in midair until his head was now facing down.

His eyes glinted maliciously as he brought both of his arms up, lifting Blue higher a few more inches.

"You're... you're gone...!" Drowzee hissed as he wildly swung his arms down.

The invisible strings attached to Blue's arms and legs suddenly began to pull him down. He felt a sudden rush of wind against his body as he began to plummet toward the rocky floor.

Blue tried to right himself in midair, thinking that at least he could try and land in a less dangerous position. But, even though he was no longer forcibly suspended in midair, the strings were still pulled taut against his limbs, preventing him from moving at all. All he could do was watch as his head drew closer and closer to the ground.

Blue shut his eyes against the inevitable. As the winds wrapped around him like an icy cloak, flashes of memory appeared in his mind. From when he first woke up to the beach, to when the Kabuto injured his leg, to when he had that fight against the bullies, and to when he first entered the town. Blue felt a little bemused smile crawl on his face as he realized that his memories only stretched to about a day and a half. What a pathetic life, he thought.

But, most of all, he thought of the friend he was leaving behind. The young Eevee's crying face appeared in his mind. He remembered when he first met her on the beach. Was she crying then? He couldn't recall. But he remembered when he first woke up, how the first thing he saw was her concerned and worried face. If he could move his head, he would've shook it at that memory.

His body was falling faster and faster now. It felt like an eternity was passing between his fall and the impact. One last memory surfaced inside his mind.

_'Yes Fée. Let's go together tomorrow. Now let me go to sleep.'_

Right, he said that to her. He promised her that he would stick together with her as they visited Treasure Town.

'Looks like I'm breaking another promise,' Blue thought to himself, 'I'm sorry, Fée...'

Blue opened his eyes. In that split second of vision, he saw Drowzee's disgusting smile. Then, everything flashed white.

* * *

_"Bluuuuuuue!"_

I dived.

When the bright white light faded, I found myself standing in the center of an unfamiliar rocky cavern. Xatu collapsed behind me, looking as though he was exhausted. But that wasn't what caught my eye. Right in front of me, falling at an incredible speed, I saw Blue falling head first.

I didn't even have time to think. I just charged toward him as fast as I could.

I slammed into his chest with my head right before he hit the ground. We tumbled away as my tackle canceled his downward momentum. I saw his eyes fly open in surprise as I grabbed him by tightly by the waist with my paws. We tumbled roughly across the floor together like a ball. I shut my eyes and cradled his body protectively, trying to keep him as safe as I possibly could.

Eventually, we slid to a stop. My head was spinning and the huge rush of adrenaline I felt was quickly fading, leaving me with a heavy sense of exhaustion.

"F – Fée...?" I heard him slowly groan out my name. Slowly, I shook the dizziness out of my head and opened my eyes.

Tears filled my eyes as I saw him lying beneath me. His body was injured all over. Bruises, cuts and other horrible injuries covered his entire body. The fur on his forehead and chest was stained red by the wound on his head, and his right leg... I couldn't even bear to look.

"Oh... oh, Blue...!" I buried my head into his chest and sobbed. A strange sense of relief filled me as I felt his heart beating underneath his fur. Even though he was so battered and bloody, I was so happy that he was still conscious and alive.

"Guh...!" I heard him cough painfully as I tightened my grasp around his body, "Fée... where did... augh! How did you?!"

"Oh!" My eyes snapped open in surprise. I saw him smiling painfully at me as I was lying on top of him. My face flushed bright red as I quickly released my vicegrip on his chest. I shook my head and quickly rolled off his body.

Blue coughed painfully and tried to stand back up. But, as he put weight on his mangled right leg, he collapsed and fell forward.

"Blue!" I quickly wedged myself between his body and the ground. He grabbed onto my back and stopped himself from slamming into the rocky floor.

"Fée... how did you get here?" He asked in a weak voice as he tried to use my body as leverage to stand back up.

I shook my head and placed my head underneath Blue's chest. With a gentle push, I shoved him back, making him fall backward and into a sitting position. He gaped at me, surprised, as I quickly pulled the torn bag off my neck.

"Hold still, Blue," I instructed him as I quickly withdrew an Oran Berry out of my bag. As I held the little blue berry, I felt a strange sense of gratitude. This little berry has helped me out so much lately that I've grown quite fond of it. Mentally, I thanked it and quickly held it in front of Blue's face.

"What is –?" He began to say in a confused tone. But I just shook my head and stuffed it into his mouth, interrupting his question.

"Eat it, it'll make you feel better." I said impatiently. Blue, although still looking a little confused, nodded obediently and began to chew the berry.

While he was slowly eating the Oran Berry, I looked over to the other side of the room. There, I saw a Drowzee kneeling in the corner. Sweat poured from the grotesque Pokémon as he panted heavily. The Drowzee was breathing heavily, and his face looked like it was heavily bruised from multiple punches. I shuddered as I watched him glare daggers at the two of us.

"Eevee..." I heard Mr. Xatu speak from behind me. I turned around and saw him panting heavily as he stumbled his way over to us. After taking a deep breath, he pointed at Blue with his wing and asked in a quiet voice, "...will the Riolu be alright?"

"Xa... Xatu?" Blue must've already swallowed the berry. He struggled to get back onto his feet as he gaped at Mr. Xatu, "Why are you here too...?"

"You two know each other?" I said, a little confused.

"Somewhat," Mr. Xatu stated in a nervous voice as he gave Blue his wing to pull him back up. Mr. Xatu shook his head and placed his wings on Blue's shoulders. He looked Blue in the eyes and said, "I'm... I'm sorry Riolu..."

"What...?" Blue tilted his head in confusion, "What for?"

Mr. Xatu shook his head again and replied, "For everything. For not assisting you when I should've... for trying to use you for my own purposes when you trusted me..."

"I don't care," Blue bluntly stated, making Mr. Xatu's eyes widen, "It doesn't matter what happened in the past, Xatu. You're here now, so you're helping me out, right?"

"Y... yes, I suppo –"

Suddenly, Mr. Xatu's words were cut short by something small and fast whizzing past us. Blue snarled and quickly grabbed Mr. Xatu's wing and my paw. He yanked us down to the ground as even more hard missiles flew past us, just barely missing our heads.

"Drowzee...!" Blue growled angrily as he punched away one of the missiles aimed at him. The pebble clattered onto the ground as Blue impudently pointed a paw at Drowzee.

"You... how dare you weaklings ignore... me...!" The Drowzee spoke in a pained, exhausted as the two of them glared at each other. As I slowly got back up, I saw the yellow Pokémon kneeling on the ground, his arms covered in some sort of eerie purple aura. He was levitating an immense quantity of pebbles behind him using some sort of psychic power. I tried to take a step forward, but Blue stopped me by putting his paw in front of my face.

"You... Riolu..." The Drowzee continued to speak in his horrid voice as he controlled more and more stones behind him, "I was... so close... you... got lucky...!"

Blue didn't answer. I saw his paw in front of me clench into a fist instead. Was he going to just run ahead and punch the Drowzee? He can't!

"Blue, you can't fight anymore!" I shouted at him hoarsely, "Your body's too injured! If you keep fighting, you'll just be hurting yourself even more!"

"She's right, Riolu!" Mr. Xatu agreed, "Furthermore, that Pokémon possesses psychic abilities! Even if you were healthy enough to punch him, he can just stop you in your tracks without even touching you!"

"I've already punched him before," Blue responded bluntly, "and I can do it again."

"Blue!" I shouted at him, but it was too late. He had already rushed forward, despite all the injuries present on his arms and legs. Was giving him that Oran Berry a bad idea?! It might've been able to give him some energy, but it can't heal up all his injuries just like that!

"You're an... idiot!" The Drowzee flung his entire army of pebbles directly at the charging Blue. If any of them struck him now, he'll be knocked out immediately! There was no way Blue could win against such an onslaught in his state!

"Noooo!" I screamed out loud as I ran after Blue. The wave of stones were mere inches away from him now, but Blue showed no signs of slowing down. I urged myself to go faster, I wanted to do something to save him, whether it was knocking him out of the way or blocking the stones myself! I didn't want to see him get hurt anymore, for anyone's sake! He was my friend, and I want him with me! Please, don't push yourself anymore, Blue!

"Light Screen!" Suddenly, a bright flash of light emitted from between Drowzee and Blue, followed by the sound of hundreds of stones colliding against something hard.

"What...?!" Drowzee and Blue both shouted the same thing. I couldn't blame them. From out of nowhere, a great wall made of a wondrous light had erected itself between Blue and Drowzee, blocking every missile that the yellow Pokémon had sent at us.

"Riolu!" Everyone's heads turned toward Mr. Xatu, who had extended both of his white wings out to his side. His eyes were glowing a beautiful blue color as he shouted loudly, "I will abandon you no longer! I'll protect you while you attack that criminal!"

"Xatu!" Blue smiled widely at Mr. Xatu. Then, Blue turned toward me and gave me a quick look. Was he telling me to fight alongside him? Right as I was pondering that thought, Blue gave me a nod, confirming my thoughts.

"Let's go, Fée!"

A burning flame of courage was ignited inside me. Blue, Mr. Xatu, and I, we're all fighting together against this enemy! I nodded back at my friend, and we both turned to face the Drowzee, who was pounding futilely against the great wall of light that Mr. Xatu had created.

"Gyaaaaaaah!" Drowzee screamed in a shrill voice, pounding his fist against the wall, "This... this cannot be...! I won't... I won't lose to weaklings!"

His hands began to glow purple once more as he slammed it against the wall. I heard Mr. Xatu make a loud, pained squawk as the wall shattered into a million, glittering fragments. The Drowzee sneered at Blue and I as he raised his arms again, ready to fire off another volley of stones.

"No!" I shouted. Before Drowzee could do anything, I was already running ahead at a ridiculous speed. The room around me became a blur as I blazed forward, headfirst. I felt a few pebbles collide against my face as I plowed through the hail of stones, but it wasn't enough to stop my advance. Within seconds, I broke through the Drowzee's shield of stones and slammed my head right into his bulbous gut!

"Gyeeegh!" He emitted a satisfying screech as he was blown backwards by my speedy blow. I bounced off his body as he was sent flying backwards. The pebbles he was controlling dropped out of the sky and clattered onto the ground. As I paused to catch my breath, I saw a blue blur rush past me.

Despite how injured he was, Blue was still running at an incredible speed. I was awed at his tenacity. His bright red eyes looked as though they were twin flames as he glared at the dazed Drowzee. He leaned back and raised up his right fist. Then, he stomped the ground with his right foot and skidded to a stop.

"How does a weakling's blow feel to you?!" Blue shouted as he used the remaining momentum from his dash to send the back of his right first at Drowzee. He struck the Drowzee's snout with the small, bony bump on the back of his paw. I winced sympathetically as I saw the Drowzee's head twist around from the sheer force of Blue's backhand.

But it wasn't over yet, Blue extended his left paw and grabbed onto Drowzee's long, stretchy snout before he was blown even farther back. With a loud shout of exertion, Blue yanked the Drowzee back and somehow managed to hurl a Pokémon larger than him over his shoulder. I watched as the fat, yellow Drowzee sailed through the air like a strangely shaped bird.

"Fée!" I was snapped out of my daze by Blue's shout. He pointed at me with his paw, and then pointed at the Drowzee sailing toward me. At first, I didn't understand what he meant, but then, he tapped his head with his paw.

Memories of yesterday's attack against the Koffing and Zubat resurged into my mind. Instinctively, I understood what Blue meant by that. I gazed up at the Drowzee. He was flying closer and closer to me. Putting what little energy I had left into my legs, I bounded off the floor and up at the Drowzee.

Until yesterday, I've never been in a fight before in my entire life. But, strangely enough, every movement I did, every thought I had, felt entirely natural to me. Maybe it was because of all the adrenaline that was pumping through my body right now, or maybe it was the sheer amount of confidence that I felt emanating from Blue that was making me move. But whatever it was, it didn't matter to me right now.

I reached the same height as the Drowzee. In that split second, I saw the yellow Pokémon's eyes widen in fear right before I reared my head back.

_ Clong!_ I slammed my head directly onto the Drowzee's, making a dull, ringing sound like that of a bell. It hurt horribly, and made me immediately regret my decision to strike at his head. However, the attack worked, as Drowzee was sent flying downward. From my height, I could see Blue and Xatu rushing into position below.

"Drowzee," I heard Blue shout at the Pokémon, "you said you wanted my leg, didn't you?"

He stuck out his right leg and nodded at Mr. Xatu. Mr. Xatu's eyes and wings began to glow bright blue once more. Suddenly, the pebbles and stones that littered the room hovered around the two of them like a small tornado. Xatu swept his wings forward, pointing them at Blue's right leg. As if on command, the pebbles all surrounded Blue's leg like a rocky shield.

"Then you can have it!" Blue shouted loudly as he twirled around, balancing on his left leg. Right before Drowzee hit the ground, Blue swung his rock – covered right foot directly into the yellow Pokémon's pudgy gut. A loud, resounding _crash!_ exploded from the kick's impact as pebbles and stones flew off Blue's foot and all over the room.

The Drowzee was blown far, far away by Blue and Mr. Xatu's powerful combination attack. The pudgy, yellow Pokémon slammed into the farthest wall away from us and stayed embedded in it. His eyes rolled into his head as he slumped down, defeated.

* * *

I suddenly felt a warm pair of paws wrap around me, catching me right before I landed onto the ground. I turned around and saw Blue holding me from behind, his arms around my body.

"Gotcha!" He said with a big, happy smile on his face as he hugged me tightly.

"Blue!" I turned around and hugged him right back, burying my face within his fuzzy chest. "Blue, we did it!" I shouted happily, my voice a little muffled by his fur, "We beat them!"

Blue patted my head and smiled at me, "Hm, that sounded a little familiar," He said in an amused voice. I giggled and hugged him even tighter, making him wince a little.

"Oh, right!" A thought ran through my mind as I let go of Blue. I quickly looked around the room for Mr. Xatu.

"Huh...?" Oddly, I couldn't find the tall bird anywhere inside the room. I asked out loud, "Mr. Xatu? Where did you go?"

There weren't any obvious exits that he could've left from, and there definitely weren't any places that he could be hiding behind. Did he teleport away? After it became clear that he was no longer present inside the chamber, I sighed and frowned in disappointment. I wanted to thank him for all the help he provided Blue and I. I glanced over to Blue, who was also looking around the room with a bewildered look on his face.

"I guess he's gone, huh?" Blue muttered as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. He looked at me and sighed.

"Maybe he had somewhere he needed to go?" I hypothesized. Blue shook his head and shrugged again, indicating that he doesn't know either. We both wore confused looks as we tried to imagine where Mr. Xatu could've gone.

"Sir! Are you alright in there?" Our wonderings were cut short by the arrival of an unfamiliar voice. I glanced toward the other end of the room, where a Patrat and a Sentret had rushed in from a tiny, almost unnoticeable crack in the wall.

"We're here to help you, Riolu!" Shouted the Patrat, who put up his paws in front of his face in a boxing pose, "Where's the criminal? I'll lay him flat with my mega punch!"

"Sir, I believe the criminal is already unconscious," said his Sentret friend, who tugged at the Patrat's arm and pointed toward the Drowzee.

The Patrat slowly followed the direction of the Sentret's finger with his eyes. When he finally reached the sight of the fainted Drowzee lying against the wall, his eyes opened up ridiculously wide and he leapt into the air, screaming.

"Gyaaah!" Patrat jumped into Sentret's arms, trembling.

"Blue, sir! I see you have succeeded in incapacitating the criminal!" The Sentret shouted, squirming uncomfortably as he tried to salute while holding onto Patrat, "Much congratulations to your success, sir!"

I gave Blue a questioning glance, wondering who those two were. He caught my gaze and gave me a small grin. Blue turned back toward the two Pokémon and cleared his throat loudly, giving the two of them a start.

"Patrat, Sentret," Blue said in an uncharacteristically serious voice, "where were you two when we were fighting the criminal?"

"Erk!" Patrat quickly clambered off his partner and stood up straight. He saluted Blue and replied dutifully, "Riolu, we were – um – busy formulating a tactical combat plan to aid you!"

"T – that's right, sir!" Sentret replied, nodding furiously, "We were waiting for the – um – opportune time, sir!"

"We could've jumped in at any time with formation Alpha, sir!" Patrat added loudly, speaking over Sentret.

"That's right, sir! Formation Alpha would've completely decimated the criminal, sir!" Sentret corroborated in a voice that was even louder than Patrat's.

"Sentret!" Patrat shouted, glaring at Sentret, "Stop attempting to speak over me!"

"Sir, with all due respect, this is my regular vocal volume, sir!"

"That is a lie, and you know it!"

"I dare not lie to you sir! However, I am inclined to bending the truth, sir!"

"Sentret...!"

"Sir...!"

Blue chuckled and shook his head at the silly antics of the two Pokémon. I began to giggle a little myself.

"Well then, since you two were absent during the battle," Blue said while trying to cover his laughing face with his paw, "I am afraid I have no choice but to give the both of you demerits."

"What?!"

"Sir, that's too cruel!"

I couldn't hold back my mirth anymore when I saw the horrified looks on the faces of those two. I burst out laughing, while Blue was having severe trouble keeping his own laughing face in check with his paws. The two little Pokémon stared at us with incredulous looks on their faces, which only served to make us laugh even harder.

"Hey, Fée..." Blue leaned over to me and whispered into my ear, "what's a demerit?"

"Blue...!" I mockingly smacked him over the head with my paw. "Don't pick on... pff – hahaha...! Don't... don't pick on them when you don't even know what you're talking about!"

Blue sheepishly scratched his nose and looked away. I shook my head and continued to giggle happily.

"Fé~e! Blu~e!"

Suddenly, a tiny, blue blur ran in between Patrat and Sentret at us, knocking the two of them aside like bowling pins. A big smile appeared on my face as I bent down and held out my paws welcomingly.

"Azurill!" I shouted happily as Azurill leapt into my embrace, nuzzling my ruff affectionately and wrapping her tail around me. I returned the affection by hugging her tightly and rubbing my chin on her head.

"Fée! You're here!" She cried, muffled by my fur. Her little face popped out from underneath my ruff and stared at me. I noticed that her face was covered by a few long, dark streaks, and the top of her head had several bruises on it. Feeling concerned and worried, I hugged her even tighter.

"I'm sorry, Fée..." She apologized in a soft voice, "I'm sorry for running away..."

I patted her head and cooed, "It's alright Azurill, you don't have to apologize."

"But I made so much trouble for everyone..."

I shook my head and put her back onto the ground. I gave her a small smile and said, "The important thing is that you're safe now, Azurill."

Blue walked over and knelt beside me. He reached out his paw and patted Azurill's head, making her blush a little.

"I'm sorry you got hurt, Azurill," Blue said in a kindly voice as he gently rubbed the dark lines on her face. Blue shut his eyes and said in a regretful voice, "It's my fault. If I hadn't let you out of my sight, then that guy never would've been able to take you away."

I placed my paw on his, making him open his eyes. I shook my head and stared directly into his red eyes and said in a comforting voice, "It's not your fault, Blue. Don't blame yourself." I smiled as I recalled the words he said to me yesterday. Blue must've recognized his own words as well, as he blushed and shook his head, grinning.

"That's right!" Azurill said in a chipper voice, "It's not your fault, Blue!"

Azurill suddenly jumped up and landed on Blue's shoulder. She wrapped her tail around his arm and pressed her cheek against his.

"You're my hero, Blue!" Suddenly, Azurill leaned over and gave Blue a big kiss on the cheek.

"Oooh!" Patrat and Sentret both opened their eyes wide and made an awed sound. I found myself staring at Azurill, my mouth hanging open out of shock.

"A – A – Azurill!" I suddenly regained my composure and shouted out loud. Azurill blushed so hard that she looked like her blue body turned completely red, while Blue just looked confused as to what just happened. Feeling oddly embarrassed and a little jealous at the same time, I quickly reached up and pulled Azurill off Blue's shoulder. Her tail untied itself and smacked me in the face in the process.

"Eheh..." Azurill giggled contentedly to herself as I held onto her. I shook my head and turned away from Blue, who still looked puzzled as to what everyone was blushing about. Azurill kept trying to squirm out of my hold, but I held on tightly while I tried to keep my own emotions in check.

"Well, it sure looks like you're all having a lot of fun."

Thankfully, the arrival of yet another unfamiliar voice rescued us from this embarrassing situation. Everyone looked up at the open roof of the cavern and saw a huge bird – shaped shadow descend from the skies.

"Rapta!" I heard Blue call out, "You're back!"

The great bird landed beside us in a flourish of feathers and dust. It was a large, magnificent Staraptor. The crest on his head gleamed brightly as he turned his head around slowly, surveying the battlefield with his sharp eyes. The Staraptor's gaze eventually fell upon the KO'd Drowzee in the corner. Then, he turned to look at Blue, or more specifically, the wounds all over Blue's body.

"Blue..." He suddenly covered his face with his wing and released a big sigh. He shook his head and gave Blue an angry stare, "I thought I told you to wait for my return before engaging the criminal in combat."

"Sorry Rapta," Blue lowered his head, looking a little shamefaced, "but I had my reasons for fighting him."

"Whatever your reasons were, you should still learn to follow directions and understand the situation before impulsively jumping into combat."

Rapta shook his head and extended a wing out to Blue. But, before the Staraptor could touch him, Azurill leapt out off my grasp and shouted.

"Don't yell at Blue, mister!" Both Rapta and Blue looked taken aback by her angry shout. Azurill glared fiercely at Rapta before continuing, "He saved my life! He's a good person, so don't get angry at him!"

Rapta blinked. Evidently, he didn't quite understand what was happening. He turned over to look at Blue, who just grinned and shrugged. Unfortunately, that only made the look of confusion on Rapta's face even more prominent. He turned back to look at Azurill, who was still glaring daggers at him.

Sighing, the Staraptor retracted his wing and took a step away from Blue. He looked over to Azurill again to see if that action appeased the little Pokémon. Azurill nodded, looking mollified. I quickly picked her back up and took a step back as well.

"You've got a pretty loyal friend there, Blue," Rapta remarked, shaking his head. Blue scratched his nose sheepishly and shrugged again.

"So what's the situation now then?" Blue asked as he pointed at the Drowzee, "What do we do with that guy?"

Rapta took a quick glance over at the Drowzee before answering, "Don't worry about him now. I've already contacted the authorities back at Treasure Town." Rapta flicked his crest nonchalantly with his wing, "They'll arrive in due time and arrest the criminal. Do not be worried."

"I see, that's good," Blue sighed and placed a paw on his chest. He turned to me and smiled, "so that means we can go home now, right?"

"E – eh?" I wasn't expecting him to suddenly address me. My face flushed red again as I quickly nodded as an answer. Blue grinned and turned back to the Staraptor, looking as though he was completely unaware of my embarrassment.

"Unfortunately, I can't quite carry you, your friend and that little spitfire over there," Rapta commented, pointing at Blue, me and Azurill. "As much as I'd love to fly you all home, I'm afraid we'd only reach halfway before we'd all crash into the ground." Rapta remarked with an amused tone.

"Eh? Then how do we get home?" Blue crossed his arms and looked confused, "Aren't we really far away from town?"

"Mr. Xatu's no longer here either," I added, "so we can't ask him to teleport us back to town..."

"That's true, hm..." Blue mumbled, cupping his paw over his chin as he pondered.

Rapta suddenly cleared his throat, catching our attention. Before we could ask anything, the Staraptor reached into his wing with his beak and withdrew something small and shiny. He began to walk toward Blue, but he paused for a second and glanced warily at Azurill, who eyeing him suspiciously. Rapta sighed in defeat and decided to drop the item in his beak on the ground instead of handing it over to Blue.

"What's this?" Blue asked as he picked it up and held it up against the sun. The object was just a tad smaller than Blue's paw, and resembled that of a small, clear marble. It glinted off the sun's rays, sending rainbow light scattering all around the rocky cavern. Azurill leapt out of my grasp and walked up to the ball, staring at it in awe.

"That, my friend," Rapta added, glancing over to Azurill again, "is an Escape Orb."

"'Escape Orb?'" Blue repeated the word, confused.

"Oh! I've heard of those before!" I piped up, recognizing the object. Everyone suddenly turned toward me, making me blush once more from the sudden attention. I quickly turned away and said, "Uhm... I've read about them before in an explorer's manual. Orbs are tools with various effects that explorers use while on expeditions."

I pointed at the clear, glassy marble in Blue's paws, "An Escape Orb has the ability to transport a group of explorers back to where they consider their home. So it's extremely valuable when you end up in a dangerous situation. Like... if your party accidentally falls into a trap and you can't find a way out."

"You're surprisingly knowledgeable about explorers," Rapta remarked, sounding impressed, "I see you aren't an apprentice yet. Have you considered applying to my guild?"

"E – eeeeeeh?!" Startled at his forwardness, I took another step backward. I felt my foot get tangled up by something on the ground and accidentally tripped, falling painfully onto my behind.

"Ow!" I glanced down at the offender and saw my little pink bag lying on the ground, its torn up straps wrapped around my leg like an entangling vine. My face burning hot, I quickly pulled the straps off my leg and picked myself off the ground. I grabbed my bag and shook my head to show them that I was fine.

"Uhm...!" Joining... his guild? I wanted to tell him that I was indeed interested in joining an exploration guild, but I didn't know what guild he belonged to. It's always been my dream to join the Wigglytuff Guild, and I didn't want to let that dream go. I prepared myself to politely decline his generous offer, but he just chuckled at me.

"Well, that was just a joke," Rapta covered his amused face with his wing, "but do give it some consideration, hm?"

Rapta turned toward Blue again, ignoring my incredulous expression. He placed his wing on the Escape Orb and addressed Blue.

"This Escape Orb is currently set to the Sheriff's back at town." He explained, "All you have to do is hold it up into the air as high as you possibly can, and it'll take you there in an instant."

Blue, startled, quickly lowered the arm that was holding the orb. He glanced over at me and Azurill and asked, "But what about my friends? Can I take them along too?"

"Of course," Rapta replied matter – of – factly, "just hold onto each other before activating the orb. It'll take you all back with no trouble at all."

"I see." Blue looked relieved at that information. He walked over to Azurill and I and held out his paw at us. Timidly, I placed my own paw on top of his while Azurill wrapped her long tail around the both of ours, securing them together.

Blue held up the orb in his other paw and prepared to raise it up into the air. But, before he activated it, he turned around to look at Rapta one more time.

"Hey, Rapta!"

The Staraptor looked surprised, "What is it?"

"Thanks for everything!"

Blue grinned at the Staraptor and quickly thrust the orb as high into the air as he could reach. In that instant, the rocky cavern, Rapta, Patrat and Sentret vanished from sight. The world became covered in a bright, white light. An odd, floating sensation took over my body. It felt like somebody had grabbed onto my ruff from behind and forcibly pulled me into the air.

The sound of rushing winds filled my hearing as we traveled through the white void. I squeezed Blue's paw tightly. I was afraid of being left behind in this strange, white world. The only thing I could feel during this voyage was the warmth of Blue's paw.

Then, one second later, the white void shattered. The next thing I knew, Blue, Azurill and I were standing in the middle of a large, wooden room. Pokémon were hustling and bustling all around us, talking in loud voices and doing all kinds of activity. Blue looked at me, his face mirroring my own confusion.

"I guess..." I said slowly, taking in the atmosphere around us, "...I guess we're home now!"

* * *

"Bwahaha! I knew he could do it! What did I tell ya, Hariyama? He's a ringer, ain't he?"

Blue and I sat on rickety wooden chairs as two loud Pokémon walked up to us. Azurill had fallen asleep on my lap and was snoring gently. One of which I recognized from the hundreds of signs posted up in town as Machoke, guildmaster of his self – titled Machoke Guild. The other was a large, heavyset Pokémon that was covering his face with his huge, huge hands.

"Yes, and I'm quite sure you're happy about completely abandoning your own event," the huge Pokémon – Hariyama I assume – said in a scathing voice, "I hope you're aware of how disappointed the contestants were when they realized that the very Guildmaster they were hoping to impress was nowhere to be found."

"Ah, well it's not a big deal," Machoke said in a nonchalant voice, shrugging for emphasis, "if they're gonna impress me, then they better show their stuff right in my face!"

"...that was the point of the battle royale, Guildmaster."

Sighing, the large Pokémon left his laughing Guildmaster behind and walked up to us. He bowed respectfully before us and said, "I apologize for whatever trouble my Guildmaster might've put you through."

"No, it was no trouble at all," Blue replied in a cordial voice, "in fact, he helped us out a lot."

Blue reached over and patted Azurill on the head, "If he hadn't offered his help, then I never would've been able to save Azurill here."

"Ehehe!" Azurill giggled as she enjoyed Blue's head pats.

Hariyama looked surprised by Blue's words and turned around to look at Machoke, who shrugged and continued to grin widely.

"I see," Hariyama closed his eyes and shook his head, "although I don't fully understand the entire situation yet, I've heard that you defeated an outlaw and rescued your friend, yes?"

"That's right."

Hariyama nodded and waved his large hand at a floating Magnemite at the other side of the room to come over. He leaned over and whispered something inaudible to the Magnemite, who beeped and whirred in response before floating out of the room. I stared at the Magnemite curiously before Hariyama turned back around and spoke again.

"Riolu, perhaps you should come with us for the time being," He said, folding his massive hands on his chest.

Blue looked surprised and said, "What do you mean? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, it's not like that at all," Hariyama shook his head. He pointed a finger at Blue's body and said, "at our guild headquarters, we can examine your injuries and get you some medical treatment. What do you say?"

"Oh," Blue glanced down at his body. He covered up his scars with his paws and shook his head at Hariyama, "It's alright, I'm totally fine. There's no need for that."

"Eh?" I goggled at him, startled, "Blue, what are you talking about?"

I glared at him and pointed a paw at his right leg, "You've been walking and fighting on that injured leg for almost two whole days now. You need to go get some rest!"

Blue crossed his arms and tried to hide his leg underneath his chair, "I said it's fine. I don't need any rest, Fée." He obstinately pointed at me in response, "I ate that – um – Oran Berry you gave me earlier. I'm totally fine now, see?"

He tried to flex his arm to show me, but his wincing face did nothing to impress me. I shook my head and sent him an angry look.

"That Oran Berry I made you ate isn't enough to completely heal you, Blue." I shook my head and continued, "You need serious help before you get hurt even more."

Blue frowned and folded his arms, "I said I'm fine, Fée. In fact, I think you need more help than I do," I looked confused as he pointed at my face, "you were hit by a few of Drowzee's stone attack earlier. I think you should go get that checked out before me."

I self – consciously pawed my face. Sure, I got hit by a few of Drowzee's missiles earlier, but it was nothing compared to the sheer amount of injuries that Blue had on his body. I shook my head and sighed. Why was he being so stubborn?

"Blue, this is nothing," I said in a frustrated voice, "your body is hurt far more than just a few scratches on my face."

I softened my gaze and stared imploringly at him, "Please, Blue," I said in a pleading voice, "I don't want to see you so injured anymore. Please, just go with Hariyama and get yourself healed."

Blue was taken aback by my sudden change in demeanor. He opened his mouth to retort, but froze as he caught sight of my stare. Eventually, he sighed and faced away from me, scratching his nose sheepishly. He stayed silent for a while, as if he was thinking hard about what to say.

"Alright Fée," He said finally, turning back to me and giving me a defeated grin, "you win. I'll go with them."

"Blue... thank you," I sighed and smiled at him. It was like a heavy weight was being lifted off my back as I watched him jump off the chair and toward Hariyama and Machoke.

"Dynamic!" Machoke bellowed suddenly, making me and Azurill wince and cover our ears, "It's nice to finally have you with us, Blue!"

"I didn't agree to anything yet, Machoke," Blue replied with a frown on his face as he stood nex to Hariyama. Machoke continued to grin though as he walked up and placed a beefy hand on Blue's shoulder.

"You might not agree now," He said, patting Blue's shoulder proudly, "but I'm sure your tune will change once you take a gander at our headquarters, ha ha!"

"Save the tour for after he's been looked at by the Audino, Guildmaster." Hariyama said with a shake of his head.

"Blah!" Machoke shouted immaturely, "Scars are the rewards of battle!"

"Not if they're still fresh, Guildmaster."

As the two muscular Pokémon walked out of the room, still arguing with each other, Blue paused and turned around. I smiled and waved at him, urging him to follow them. He looked away for a second before giving me one last look.

"See you, Fée." He spoke in a low voice, just barely audible over the hubbub of the sheriff's office.

"Bye, Blue..." I felt my smile slipping slightly as I watched his back disappear beyond the doorway. I cupped Azurill's body with my paws and hugged her.

A strange flood of sadness rushed through my heart as I sat alone in the room. I didn't know what I wanted to do. A part of me wanted to run after Blue and follow him to Machoke's Guild, but I couldn't just leave Azurill alone in here. I had to stay and wait for her brother to come and take her home before I could leave. I closed my eyes and lightly placed my chin on top of Azurill's head and listened to her soft breathing as she continued to sleep. Slowly, I began to nod off as well.

* * *

I had a little dream.

I dreamt that I was standing in the middle of a snowfield. Everywhere I looked, there was pure, white snow covering the ground. Tiny, glittering flakes of white were gently drifting down from the sky. At the center of the snowfield, there was a solitary tree. Its thick branches and bushy leaves were covered with a heavy layer of snow, making it lean slightly to the left.

It was a lonely, forgotten tree.

No other trees or plants grew around this tree. It was simply by itself in the middle of a vast, empty snowfield.

And yet, despite being alone and friendless, it continued to grow. This lonely tree grew into a large, strong tree that can withstand the heavy weight of the snow piling on top of it.

I touched the tree's surface, feeling its rough bark against my paw. A strange, nostalgic feeling washed over me as I looked up into its branches. I felt a memory inside my heart. However, as I tried to recall it, the memory refused to budge. It was as if the memory had been too deeply buried underneath all this snow.

Yet, as I sat in front of the lonely tree, I felt an odd sense of kinship with it. I wanted to know where this tree was, or why it felt so familiar to me. But, as I continued to think about it, my body began to shiver.

I was sitting in the middle of a snowfield, after all.

Smiling wryly to myself, I curled up into a small ball at the foot of the solitary tree. I don't know why, but it just felt natural. Eventually, as the snow slowly piled up around me, I closed my eyes and left this snowy world behind.

* * *

"Guuh..."

I woke up feeling sore and uncomfortable. Groggily, I opened my eyes and looked around me. The sheriff's office was completely empty. I was alone inside of the dark, wooden room. I glanced down at my paws. Azurill was no longer there. Instead, there was a small paper note lying at the place where she was.

I picked up the note and held it up to the dim moonlight. It was just bright enough for me to make out what the words were.

'Fée, thank you for everything you've done for us today.'

I recognized the neat, but somewhat shaky handwriting as that of Marill's. He must've come and picked Azurill up after I fell asleep. I glanced back down at the letter and continued to read.

'When I heard that you returned with Azurill, I was so happy and relieved that I cried when I saw her sitting here.'

I noticed that some parts of the note were indeed smudged by several large water droplets. I shook my head and tried not to imagine Marill sobbing as he bent over the piece of paper, writing around his tears.

'Azurill woke up, of course, and she wanted to know where your friend was. The Riolu, I assume? But, as we tried to wake you up, you wouldn't rouse, no matter what we did. So we decided to just let you sleep. You looked really tired too.'

A pang of emotion hit me as I remembered my goodbye to Blue. I looked up from the letter and at the doorway in front of me. I don't know how long I had spent asleep, but hours must've already passed between our goodbye to now. Blinking away my tears, I turned back to Marill's letter.

'I don't know when you might wake up, but when you do, let it be known that you're always welcome to come over to our place for food and, if you want, you can stay here with us as well. I'm sure Azurill will enjoy your company. If not, then I'd be glad to talk to you some more, sometime.'

I smiled at his invitation. Although I considered Marill a good friend, I didn't want to impose on his hospitality too much. I did make a mental note to visit them someday though.

'Also, just between you and me, I've decided to take your words to heart. I haven't told Azurill yet, but I'm planning on spending more time with her. Not as a fussy mother, but as her brother. It's a little scary to go out every day, but for her sake, I'll try to be a little braver. Just like you, Fée.'

I cocked my head to the side as I reached the end of the letter. He thought I was brave? Suddenly, I remembered the speech I gave him before I teleported away with Mr. Xatu. I suppose I did cheer him up a bit as well as encourage him to... well, stop being a coward. I blushed a little as I remembered my odd confidence from before. It was a little unbelievable to think that I, who was pretty much the same as Marill yesterday, would be able to tell him to stop being a coward.

And it was all thanks to my new friend, Blue.

"Thanks... Blue..." I whispered quietly as I folded Marill's letter. My bag was lying beside me. The straps were once again tied together in the same hasty fashion as before. As I picked it up with my teeth, I glanced down inside it.

My precious treasure. The small fragment of rock that I held so dearly. Everything began when it was stolen from me by those two bullies.

I wondered. If I hadn't been robbed by those two, would I have ever met Blue?

Probably, probably not. I wouldn't know.

I shook my head and threw my bag over my neck. I stuffed Marill's letter inside of it and slowly walked out of the sheriff's office.

The cold, night wind blew across the now – emptied streets. I shivered a little as the chilly wind ruffled my fur, brushing away what little grogginess I had left inside me. It was a little unbelievable. Just earlier today, the streets were filled with crowds and crowds of Pokémon. And now, as night has fallen, it seemed like everyone had suddenly disappeared.

As I looked up into the night sky, I mulled over my options. If I headed to my left, I would be on the road back to where I lived. If I went to my right, I would find myself in front of the great staircase that lead to Wigglytuff's Guild once more.

Today's the day, I said to myself this morning. Today's the day that I'll ask them to accept me as an apprentice.

I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with the cool night air. There was no reason for me to hesitate, right? Even thought Blue was no longer with me, I'm no longer a coward!

I slapped the sides of my face with my paws and took a step to the right.

* * *

It didn't take very long for me to reach the top of the cliff once again. I looked around at the now very – familiar sights. The wooden totem poles that displayed a bunch of Pokémon faces, the two huge braziers that stood, unlit, beside the road. Even down to the little dry bushes that dotted the top of the plateau. I knew it all, I've seen it all. After all, I've been here every day.

I looked at the huge, pink tent looming out of the ground in front of me. Personally, I thought it looked pretty garish. Although I do consider pink as one of my favorite colors, the tent was so brightly colored and so eye – catching that it kinda gave me the creeps.

I shook my head. This wasn't the time to criticize the guild's preference in tents. I took a step forward, onto the wooden grille embedded in the road. I felt the grille dip downward slightly under my weight as I waited. Usually, when I stand on this grille, a voice explodes from underneath, shouting out that an Eevee had arrived.

However, this time, the only sound I heard was the whistling of the night wind blowing across the frontier. I looked around, confused. It was only when my eyes locked onto the bright moon above that I realized.

It was late. Very late. Night had probably fallen hours ago and anyone who was in the guild was probably asleep by now, which included the sentry below. A bemused smile wormed its way onto my face as I gently stepped off the grille. I stared at the bright pink tent as I took a step back onto the dirt.

What was I expecting? Did I think someone was going to be there, this late at night, and let me in? I shook my head. I was being too presumptuous.

"Today... wasn't my day either," I mumbled sadly to myself. I tugged at the bag around my neck as I turned my back to the tent. Sighing, I decided to head home for the night.

"Hey, where are you going?"

I froze. My right paw was just about to step down onto the stairs as I heard a familiar voice behind me. Slowly, I put my paw down and turned around.

"B...Blue?" I stifled a gasp when I saw him. The Riolu, my friend, was leaning against one of the totem poles that stood next to the road. He grinned as I acknowledged his presence and pushed himself off the wooden post.

I was stunned, no startled, no surprised. A million questions were rushing through my mind at a ridiculous pace. My heart was beating so hard that I thought it was going to leap out of my chest and do a jig on the road. I tried to open my mouth and ask him a question, but the only sound that came out of my mouth was a muffled, choking noise.

"What, is it that surprising to see me?" He remarked as he watched me struggle with my emotions with a curious expression on his face. He took his right paw and waved it in front of my face, "Hellooo? Fée? You home in there?"

"W... wh..." I my mouth continued to gibber odd noises as I tried to formulate a sentence. Blue tilted his head questioningly at me and tapped me on the forehead with his paw. I shook my head wildly, knocking away his paw.

"Blue...!" I finally managed to gasp out. My voice was hoarse and low as I finally found the words I was looking for, "Blue... what are you doing here?!"

"What do you mean, 'what am I doing here?'" Blue replied in an indignant tone as he held his paw, "Am I not allowed to be up here at night?"

"No, I mean, that's... errgh!"

I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to recompose myself. He's so infuriating sometimes! Opening my eyes again, I glared at his dumb, smiling face angrily.

"I mean, didn't you go with Machoke and Hariyama to their guild?" I said in an angry tone, "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be lying in a bed somewhere there?"

"Jeez," Blue scratched his nose sheepishly, "If I knew you were going to be so mad to see me, I wouldn't have waited here in the cold for hours."

"You... what?" Once again, I found myself at a loss for words. Blue folded his arms and grinned at me.

"When Machoke and Hariyama took me away, they kept trying to convince me to join their guild," He explained, waving a paw around in the air, "but I just refused them every time."

"Why?" I said out of confusion, "Being invited to a guild by a Guildmaster isn't something you can just ignore, Blue!"

"Really?" Blue looked genuinely surprised at what I said, "Well, I guess I just ignored them then!"

"Argh, that's not what I meant!" I shook my head out of frustration and glared at Blue again, "I mean, why did you refuse? You're perfect for that guild!"

"I am? How so?"

Was he being annoying on purpose? I didn't know, but I answered anyway, "Machoke's Guild only wants Pokémon that are strong and brave! And... well, you're both of those! Plus, even the Guildmaster really seemed to like you, Blue!"

"I guess so," Blue replied nonchalantly, "he's a nice guy, but, between you and me, he's kinda stuffy."

"Stuf...what?!"

Blue frowned and folded his arms, "That guy – Machoke – keeps doing these weird poses and talking loudly as we walked to their guildhouse. It was funny at first, but then it got really annoying after a while."

"So... what did you do?" I asked slowly, afraid of what kind of answer I'm going to get.

Blue grinned widely at me and said, "I ran away, of course."

I ran up and tackled him in the chest. He gasped out of surprise as we tumbled down onto the dirt. I stood on top of him, glaring down at his stupid grinning face.

"You can't just run away from a Guildmaster, Blue!" I hissed, outraged, "That's... that's incredibly disrespectful!"

"Hahaha!" Blue laughed cheerfully for some infuriating reason. I growled and pressed my forehead against his, staring directly into his eyes.

"Blue, I'm taking you back to Machoke's to apologize, right now!"

Blue stopped laughing, but he continued to grin at me. He reached up with his paw and patted me on the back of the head as he continued to smile in that dorky way.

"Fée, if you take me back to Machoke's right now, then you can't do what you wanted to do here, you know." He said plainly.

"What...?" I replied, confused. Blue shook his head, knocking up some dust with his ears.

"Don't you remember?" He said as he gently pushed me off his body. He sat up and dusted his paws off and pointed at the big, pink tent behind him, "You said that 'today was the day!' and that you were going to finally apply at Wigglytuff's Guild, right?"

"Y – yes..." I gaped at him for a second before quickly shaking my head, "T – that's not the point right now!"

I grabbed onto his paw with my teeth and tried to pull him off the ground, but he stayed stubbornly still with his behind glued to the dirt. He laughed annoyingly at me as he watched me struggle to pull him away and toward Machoke's Guild.

"Fée – ouch!" He yelped in pain when I accidentally bit a little too hard. I quickly let go out of surprise. Blue shook his paw and blew on it.

I sighed in defeat and sat down next to him, watching him suckle his paw like a little child.

"Blue, there's no point in me being here now anyway, you know?" I said in a disappointed voice, "Even if I were to ask someone to open up, they might all be asleep by now."

"Hm?" Blue pulled his paw out of his mouth, trailing a little saliva from it as he turned around and looked at the thick wooden gate in front of the tent. He pondered it for a second before saying, "Well, that's a shame, huh?"

I nodded, moreso out of disappointment than annoyance by now, "That's why we should just take you back to Machoke and apologize. He's probably still waiting for you back at his guild, Blue."

"Hm, but if I went back now, I'd be breaking my promise with you again, Fée."

Promise? What did he mean by that? I glanced at him with a puzzled look on my face, wondering what kind of promise he made with me.

"What, you don't remember?" Blue said, noticing my confused expression, "It was yesterday, Fée! At the cave? Remember, you wouldn't let me sleep until I said yes?"

"Um..."

Blue sighed at my inability to remember, "And I thought I had memory problems..." He remarked dryly. Dusting himself off, he stood up from the ground and extended a paw to me. I took it and he pulled me up with him.

"I promised to stick together with you when we head to Treasure Town, remember?" Blue explained with a slight frown on his face, "Then you ran away from me before we even reached the town gates."

"Oh... oh!" Suddenly, my memory of last night reappeared in my head. I felt my face heat up as I recalled what I made Blue promise me. I quickly turned away and covered my face with my paws. He didn't have to take that promise so seriously!

"Well, I suppose I'm partly at fault too," I heard him say from behind my covered face, "When I made it into town, I kinda got distracted and forgot to go find you."

"Eh?"

I peeked out from behind my paws and saw him gingerly rubbing his chest. The huge bruise that was present there earlier had mostly faded away now, thanks to the salve I put on it a while ago. He scratched his nose sheepishly as he quickly covered up his chest when he saw me gazing at it.

"So, I'm sorry Fée," He said in a low voice, "I should've stuck closer with you earlier. I broke our promise. Please forgive me!"

He clasped his paws together and bowed in front of me apologetically.

I turned my head away and pretended to cough. I didn't know how I should respond to him. After all, he wasn't the only one that got distracted too. I remembered my chance meeting with Azurill, as well as being dragged into a restaurant with Sunflora and Loudred. He's not the only one at fault.

"Blue..." I turned back and smiled at him, "You don't have to apologize. It's not all your fault."

"Some of it still is though," He replied, poking his head up, "and I'd like to make it up with you, Fée."

"Eh?"

Blue suddenly straightened up and walked back to the totem pole. I watched him curiously as he disappeared behind the wooden sculpture. He reappeared a second later, holding a small, multicolored box in his paws.

"What's that?" I asked, staring curiously at the box. He grinned and put the box onto the ground in front of me.

It was a small, rectangular box with a rounded lid. It resembled that of a treasure chest actually, except much smaller than what I've read about in adventure stories. The box was mostly made of wood, but it had a small, metal hinge behind the lid so it could open up. Splotches of color adorned the box's surface, giving it a bright, colorful personality.

I gently nudged the lid, and found that it opened up fairly easily. I quickly glanced over at Blue, who just nodded at me and redirected my attention back to the box with his paw. I gulped nervously and proceeded to push the lid completely open.

At first, I couldn't tell what was inside. But, as the moonlight shone into the box, I slowly began to make out what the contents were.

"Is this... a ribbon?" I reached inside and pulled out a short length of cloth. It was pink colored, but in a softer hue than that of the tent behind Blue. The fabric felt soft and nice to the touch, and it glowed dimly in the moonlight. It was the most beautiful ribbon I've ever seen in my entire life.

"That's right," Blue said as he gently closed the box's lid. He took the ribbon from my paws and walked behind me. Then, he placed it against my right ear. I shuddered a little when I felt him touch my sensitive ears.

"Hold still, I'm not really skilled at this just yet," He whispered as he began to clumsily tie the ribbon onto my ear. After a few minutes of fumbling around, he finally pulled the two ends of the ribbon taut and backed away.

I reached up with a paw and touched the soft cloth that was now tied on my ear. It felt loose and uncomfortable, and I was afraid that it was going to fall off if I touched it again. Overall, Blue wasn't very good at tying ribbons.

But, at the same time, I felt as though it didn't matter. A smile crept onto my face as I closed my eyes and patted the ribbon again. I felt a little bit of his warmth radiating from the ribbon, as if he had placed a little bit of his own strength into the ribbon as he was tying it.

I opened my eyes and turned around to look at Blue. He had a strange, almost nervous – looking expression on his face, as if he wasn't sure if he tied it on correctly or not. I opened my mouth wide and gave him a great, big smile.

Feeling a warm emotion inside my chest, I slowly stood up and walked toward Blue. He still had that funny look on his face as I neared him. I didn't say anything at all. I just closed my eyes and rested my cheek on his chest.

"Jeez," I heard him mumble, "And now you're all nice and huggy again. I just don't get you sometimes."

"Hehe..." I giggled and gave him a playful nudge. He responded by pushing me back and chuckling a little.

"Hey Blue?" I asked him in a quiet voice, "Can I be selfish for a little bit?"

"Selfish?" He replied, "Sure, why not?"

I smiled and looked up into his red eyes.

"Can you stay with me for a while?"

"How long is a while?"

"I dunno, how about until I become a real explorer?"

"A real explorer, huh?"

"It's always been my dream, you know. To go out and explore."

"Yeah, I know."

"So..."

"Sure, Fée. I'll stick with you until then, and then, maybe even a little bit after."

"You sure you wont regret it? I'm not as brave or as strong as you, Blue..."

"I don't mind. You're a lot more fun to hang around with than Machoke and his sweaty gang."

"Hehe... thanks, Blue."

* * *

"You think they'll try to enter any time soon?"

Sunflora shushed her irritated companion by holding her leaf up to her mouth. Loudred grumbled inaudibly, a surprising feat for the usually – loud Pokémon, and ducked behind the tent's pink flaps. Sunflora shot him a dirty look and continued to look out at the two embracing Pokémon outside.

"Oooh... those two are just adorable, don't you think?" She couldn't hold back her glee as she saw Fée hug Blue, "I just can't get enough of watching them! I'm going to write this in my diary as soon as I get back to my room!"

"Yeah, and how long will that take?" Loudred grumbled as he yawned, "Those two have stood out there for almost half an hour. Who knows how much longer they'll take?"

"If you hadn't taken so long to open the gate, they could've been in here already, Loudred!"

Loudred jabbed a thumb at Blue and Fée outside and replied irritably, "They didn't even notice that the gate is open, Sunflora. What am I to do? I can't just go outside now and ruin their little lovey – dovey moment."

"Oooh.. you're right..." Sunflora said reluctantly, "Maybe they'll notice on their own eventually! I can't wait to welcome them to the guild, eek!"

Loudred sighed and shrugged his shoulders despondently, "Yeah, sure. Who knows how long that'll take?"


	14. Bonus: A Little Heart to Heart

**•   
Bonus Chapter  
**

**"A little heart to heart"**

"...I figured you'd find me eventually."

Xatu sighed deeply. He had heard the sound of rustling cloth from behind him, and the soft noise of one taking a single footstep. Furthermore, he could feel the gentle breeze of the night air flowing into his cramped tent, slipping through the flaps that protected his tent from the outside.

"It took me a while, you know." The visitor said, smirking pridefully, "I already checked here a few times, but you weren't here."

"So why are you here again?" Xatu said, keeping his back to the visitor.

The visitor took the response as an invitation to enter the tent fully. He sat on the carpet that covered the floor of the tent and grinned at the bird sitting opposite him.

"I just had a feeling you'd be here," He said casually, "that's all."

"A feeling, huh?" Xatu covered his face with his wing, "I see..."

The visitor's ears perked up at what the bird said. He cupped his chin with his paw curiously and said, "Speaking of which, how did you find me anyway? Did you really use your powers of sight?"

"Did I really...?" The bird shook his head slowly and replied in a tired voice, "Even now, I have a hard time believing that I did."

Xatu calmly moved his gaze to the ceiling of his tent. At the top of his tent was a small hole. Normally, he would burn incense and fragrant grasses to produce a special colored smoke that would drift out of the hole in plumes to attract customers. But today, his fire wasn't lit and the only thing that came through the hole was a bright ray of moonlight.

Since he returned from Mount Bristle, he attempted to reactivate the power of sight many times. However, no matter how hard he focused, he simply could not bring about that strange blackout, or that painful headache. It was as if his freak vision from before had never happened.

"I have a confession," Xatu slowly turned around and faced the visitor. With a serious glint in his eyes, Xatu asked in a sincere voice, "Will you listen to it, Riolu?"

The visitor's grin was brightly visible, even within the dimness of the tent. He folded his paws across his chest and shook his head.

"No, I wont." Blue said nonchalantly to a startled Xatu, still grinning, "But, I will hear you out on one condition."

"...and what's that?" Xatu said nervously.

"My name isn't Riolu," He said in a prideful voice, "It's Blue. Get it right."

Xatu gaped at him, completely stunned silent by his answer. He hadn't expected such a strange, almost child – like demand. It was so unexpected that he couldn't help but crack a smile at him.

"Mmhmhmhm..." He covered his beak with his wing again, but this time, he did it to muffle his amused chuckling.

"What's so funny?" Blue said indignantly as he angrily jabbed his finger at the laughing bird.

"No... I'm just... surprised, is all," Xatu coughed behind his wing to try and halt the chuckles, "I... I wasn't expecting such a straightforward request... ahem..."

Xatu took a deep breath to recompose himself. He lowered his wings and replaced them onto his chest as he placed his gaze upon the visitor.

The Riolu that he met this morning, the one who calls himself Blue. Even if he possessed the power of sight from birth, Xatu doubted that he would ever be able to predict this Pokémon's actions. Everything that Riolu did went completely against his expectations. Even now, Xatu continued to be stumped by him.

"Very well..." Xatu made a big show out of clearing his throat before continuing. He straightened himself out and stared directly at the Riolu wearing an amused expression on his face.

"Riol... I mean, Blue... do you mind if we had a little heart to heart?"

"Sure. Let's have a talk."

Xatu smiled. He opened his beak to begin his confession, but suddenly...

"Oh wait!" Blue shouted suddenly. He clapped his paws together and turned around, leaving Xatu feeling quite foolish with his beak wide open. "Hold on Xatu, I just remembered something!" Xatu clacked his beak shut and goggled at Blue's back. He appeared to be rustling with something behind him, but Xatu couldn't quite make it out in the dim light.

The sound of cloth being fumbled with, along with an unusual noise of metal clinking made Xatu incredibly confused. After a moment, Blue turned around and flashed Xatu a smile. He presented proudly a large, heavy sack in his arms. Bewildered, Xatu stared at the sack, wondering what was inside.

"I almost forgot!" Blue said in a chipper voice as he hurriedly dropped the sack on the floor, causing a loud, resounding clinking noise to explode from within, "Machoke and his guildmates told me that capturing Drowzee was worth quite a few Poké. Apparently he was a pretty notorious criminal in other towns too, so they gave me this as a reward for defeating him."

The Riolu eagerly pulled the sack open, revealing its contents. Xatu's eyes practically bugged out at the sight of hundreds of gleaming, golden coins inside. He reached into the bag with his wing and picked out a single coin. The small, rounded piece of metal glowed with a dull shine as he held it up in the moonlight. One side was emblazoned with a stylized P, while the other displayed the numerical worth of the coin.

"B – Blue... what is this?" Xatu stuttered, completely flabbergasted. He had never seen such a huge amount of money in one place before. At most, he had only been able to save up a handful of gold before he spent it all.

"It's Poké, isn't it?" Blue responded simply, his tone plain, "You should be able to recognize it, I mean, you were the one who told me about it."

"No, I mean – hold on a second!" Xatu covered his face with his wing and turned away from the Riolu's excited face. The conversation was fast moving into a direction that he couldn't understand! He took a deep breath to calm himself from the sudden swerve in topic and tried to compose himself as much as possible before returning to the conversation.

After a moment of silence, Xatu turned back to the Riolu. Blue was picking up the coins inside the sack and letting them drop back inside carelessly, making loud clinking sounds echo around inside his small tent.

"Alright, Blue..." Xatu began, leering warily at the sack of coins, "How... how about you tell me everything from the start first...? I don't think... I quite understand why you're showing me... all of this..."

"Well, I just remembered what you told me earlier today." Blue said plainly as he dropped another coin back into the sack.

"What I told you...?"

He nodded earnestly, "Remember? You told me that your charms were worth 900 Poké or something. I'm not too sure about how many Poké were in this bag that the guys at the guild gave me, so I just brought it all."

"Hold... wait, you mean..." Xatu was struck dumb by what he just heard. He stared at Blue, then at the sack of glittering coins, then back at Blue. The gears in his shrewd mind was grinding at maximum speed as he began to comprehend what the Riolu was saying.

"You brought all of this... just to buy one of my charms?"

Blue grinned and nodded energetically.

Xatu felt as though he was about to fall over from the sheer absurdity of the situation. The amount of money inside of the sack far outnumbered the worth of any charm he owned. In fact, it probably outnumbered the worth of everything he owned.

"This amount of Poké..."

One thought ran through Xatu's mind. With this much Poké in his possession, he could easily pay off every single debt he's accrued throughout his entire life. With this much Poké in his possession, he could easily escape from the clutches of the Persian and Meowth that has haunted him for so long. With this much Poké...

But, could he really accept such a thing with a clear conscience? He looked up at Blue, who was watching him interestingly, waiting eagerly for a response. For all the lies and mistreatment he's given to that Riolu, was he worthy of such a gift?

With a deep sigh, Xatu shook his head. No, he couldn't. Such an easy path doesn't exist for someone like him. And even if it did, what would he gain from taking such a path? He had already spent his entire life always trying to walk the easy road, and all that's gotten him was nothing but trouble and suffering. If he accepted this gift from Blue, then wouldn't he just be making the same mistakes once more?

"Blue... I can't accept this," Xatu said, pushing the sack of coins back to a bewildered Blue.

"Eh? But why? Is the amount wrong?"

Xatu shook his head again, "No, the amount is... well, I'd say the amount is too right." He gently shut the opening of the sack, hiding the gleaming coins away from the moonlight. "But I still cannot accept your generous gift."

"I don't understand," Blue folded his arms and huffed, "is it the wrong coins then? Are there different types? I just don't understand this money thing."

Xatu chuckled. Truly, this Riolu sure is an odd Pokémon. Xatu had never met a more honest Pokémon than Blue. It was a refreshing experience for him. For most of his life, he had been mired in the dark, grungy world of lies and trickery. To him, Blue was like a stray ray of sunlight in his world of dishonesty.

Xatu stood up and turned his back to Blue. He walked over to the other side of his tent and stood in front of a large, wooden chest lying on the floor.

"Blue, I truly appreciate what you're offering," Xatu said as he opened up the chest, "however, I cannot just accept your money in good conscience."

Inside the chest was every single charm and talisman Xatu had owned. From ribbons to necklaces, bracelets to collars, everything he owned was stored safely inside this container. Xatu reached inside and withdrew a single object from within.

"However, I will offer you a proposition." Xatu said with a smile as he turned around. He held the object in his wing up to the moonlight. It was a small, yellow seashell suspended in the air by a thin string. The bright red jewel embedded in the shell glinted dimly as the necklace spun around leisurely.

"This is what you wanted, right?" He said as he handed Blue the Necklace of Memory. "I'll give you this charm for free. But, you have to listen to what I have to say, is that fine with you?"

Blue took the necklace from Xatu's wing and examined it. Then, he shook his head.

"You don't want it?" Xatu said, confused.

"This isn't what I wanted," Blue replied as he handed the necklace back, "I was going to ask you for the other thing you showed me. That pink colored ribbon."

"The... Aura Bow?"

Xatu took the necklace and replaced it with the pink ribbon inside the chest. He held it in front of Blue for confirmation.

Blue nodded quickly and beamed, "Yeah, that's the one."

"I'm surprised, Blue," Xatu remarked as he handed the ribbon over to the Riolu, "I had assumed that you were more interested in the Necklace of Memory."

"I was," Blue admitted as he examined the ribbon, "but, I decided that I'd rather have this instead."

"Would you mind telling me the reason?"

Blue grinned as he tried to tie the ribbon into a bow, "It's for a friend. You said that this ribbon helps someone get stronger, right?"

Xatu nodded hesitantly, "Yes... I believe so."

"My friend's worried about being weak and afraid, so I thought maybe this charm of yours could help her get a little bit braver, you know?"

"That's... very generous of you, Blue."

"You think?" Blue tilted his head to the side quizzically. He accidentally undid the messy bow tie in his paws, making him grumble in frustration.

"Well then, will you accept my proposition then?" Xatu reminded him. Blue looked up from his paws and nodded.

"Very well," Xatu closed his eyes and quietly thought about what he was going to say. This Riolu had forced him to reevaluate the way he was living his life. It only seemed fair that he cleared things up with him.

"Blue, I haven't been completely forthright with information with you." He began, "Since we met, I've been lying to you. Trying to fool you into listening to me and believing in me."

"I do not possess the power of sight," Xatu turned away from Blue, avoiding his eyes, "Since my birth, I lacked such abilities that my ancestors had. My powers of sight... are probably just as powerful as yours, Blue."

"Eh?" Blue sounded surprised, "What do you mean by that?"

"I apologize, that was probably a little confusing," Xatu lowered his head and sighed, "My claims of being able to see all... to be able to view everything that goes on within town, or to predict the future... it's nothing more than a self – serving lie."

Xatu shook his head, "You were right back when you called me a liar at the plaza. Back then, when you asked me to use my sight to find your friend, I truly could not have helped you. But, I couldn't have let you known that then. So, I lied."

"But, I don't understand," Blue interrupted, "why did you feel the need to lie to me?"

Xatu chuckled humorlessly, "I have an awful reason." Xatu turned around and gave Blue a pathetic look, "I needed you to uphold our deal."

"You mean, you needed me to fight in that battle royale thing?"

Xatu nodded, smiling uncomfortably as he did so, "I needed you to keep fighting. I needed you to win."

"Why, you may ask?" Xatu intercepted Blue's question, "Because I was a fool, Blue. I had a foolish idea to use your strength for my own gain. I... I went to a dangerous group of Pokémon and placed a dangerous gamble on your victory."

"A gamble on me? I don't understand..."

"Perhaps it's better you don't," Xatu shook his head dejectedly, "either way, I was selfishly abusing your trust for my own gain. And in the end, I betrayed your trust when you needed me the most. All because I was afraid to let you know the truth." He guiltily tapped the side of his head, "The truth that I was just a foolish bird that wanted to use you for my own selfish needs."

"No." Blue stated in a plain voice, "You're lying again."

"What?" Xatu slowly lowered his wing, "What do you mean?"

Blue folded his arms in front of his chest and sighed, "You didn't betray me at all, Xatu."

Xatu cocked his head to the side, wondering what he meant. Blue responded by sighing again and frowning discontentedly.

"You took Fée to Mount Bristle. You protected me from Drowzee's attack. You helped me beat up that creep with that thing you did with the stones." Blue said, smirking, "You didn't betray me at all."

"But I went and lied to you about everything!" Xatu insisted, waving his wings around wildly, "I … I was using you! I tried to belittle you in public when you argued with me!"

"So? It's not like any of that stuff really mattered in the end, did it?"

Xatu gaped at the Riolu, astonished by just how little he cared about his betrayal.

"Even if you can't see or anything doesn't matter," Blue added, "all I remember is that you came to my aid when I was in trouble. That's what really counts, don't you think?"

"You... you don't care that I abused you like that? That I bent your trust for my own purposes?"

Blue shrugged and tapped the side of his head, mimicking the bird's actions, "Like I said, all I saw was you helping me fight against that Drowzee. Whether or not you went and gambled on me fighting, I don't know, nor do I really care."

"Besides, you must've had a lot of faith in me if you really believed that I could beat everyone at that battle royale thing!"

Xatu could only watch, stupefied as the Riolu chuckled in a carefree way in front of him. Why was this Riolu so willing to forgive him for all he's done? Xatu just could not understand.

"Blue... you're willing to forgive me for what I've done...?"

The Riolu interrupted his laughter with an exasperated sigh. Annoyed, Blue pushed himself off the ground and stretched his arms and legs. Afterward, he held out his right paw to Xatu.

"I forgive you Xatu," Blue beamed as he offered his paw, "so forget about all that complicated stuff already!"

"You're the oddest Pokémon I've ever met, Blue," Xatu shook his head as he stood up. He looked down at his wing. A few feathers were still missing from when they were forcibly pulled apart earlier. Back then, he had considered it a symbol of his betrayal. But now, he considered it a reminder. A reminder to never lie again.

"But," Xatu smiled as he covered Blue's paw with his wing, "that's not such a bad thing."

"Thanks, Xatu," Blue said as he shook the bird's wing.

"No, I should be thanking you," Xatu replied, "you've helped me learn an important lesson today, Blue."

"Oh, what's that?"

Xatu released his grip on Blue's paw. With a dramatic swoosh, he extended out both of his wings beside him, forming his favorite pose.

"The importance of honesty."

* * *

After a while, the Riolu left with a small, colorful box in his arms, which contained the precious Aura Bow inside. Xatu watched from behind the tent flaps as Blue ran off toward the guilds district. He has spoken something about finding his friend before the night ended. Xatu assumed that he was speaking about the female Eevee from earlier. Fée, was it?

When Blue finally disappeared from his sight, Xatu sighed and retreated into his tent. Starting tomorrow, he was going to begin his life anew. He'll live a more honest life, without lies or deceit. Although he wasn't sure about what he was going to do, he was confident that he could figure something out. After all, if that Riolu could succeed in something as difficult as a battle against a criminal, then he should be able to find something he could do as well.

Feeling strangely elated for tomorrow, Xatu walked to the center of the tent with a gleeful bounce in his step. Suddenly, his foot hit something hard on the floor. Groaning a little, he glanced down.

"W... what?"

He was greeted with the sight of a sack filled to the brim with gleaming coins. He sighed. That Riolu must've forgotten to take it with him when he left. Xatu reached over to the sack and tried to move it out of the way so he could have a place to sleep. When he meets Blue again, he'll remind him to take it away. But, as he pushed the sack, he noticed something strange attached to the side of the sack. It wasn't visible before, as Blue had always kept that side of the sack facing him.

Curious, Xatu leaned down and tried to make out what it was in the dim light. It was a small, white badge with the number "27" printed on the surface. Below the badge was a series of messily written words, a message left for him, perhaps? With great difficulty, Xatu read out the message.

"This is a gift from Blue to Xatu!"

Xatu stared blankly at the childish message for a moment. He rubbed his eyes, wondering if he had imagined it. But no, it was there, shining in the moonlight. The Riolu told him before that he couldn't read, so did Blue ask one of the guild members to write it out for him? He sighed as he pushed the bag over to the side of the tent, leaving it next to the big wooden chest where he stored his valuables.

"What an odd Pokémon."

Xatu smiled as he lied down on the carpet. What an odd Pokémon indeed.


	15. It's mine! It's mine! It's mine!

**• ****  
Chapter 14:**

**"**It's mine! ******It's mine! ****It's mine!**"

I took a deep breath, to calm my nerves. My fatigue from last night slowly melted away as I inhaled the fresh, crisp morning air. With warmth slowly rising inside my body, I took a single step forward, stopping right in front of the wooden grille embedded in the ground. From behind me, I heard a loud, tired yawn.

I turned around. Blue was stretching his arms and legs drowsily. I watched him sluggishly trudge his way over to me, rubbing his unfocused eyes and continually yawning. I shook my head as I tried to hold back a giggle. He really was horrible at waking up early in the morning.

Looking away from Blue, I returned my gaze to the wooden grille situated in the ground. This was it, this was the day. Gulping nervously, I walked onto the grille and stood still, waiting for the usual voice to announce my arrival.

"Pokémon detected!" I flinched as the usual loud voice exploded from underneath the grille, "Pokémon detected!"

I heard a startled yelp from behind me. Glancing back, I saw Blue had drawn his fists up in a defensive stance as he scanned around him with a cautious expression on his face, all traces of somnolence gone.

"Whose footprint?" Another voice replaced the first one. I tilted my head to the side. This voice sounded familiar, somehow...

"It's an Eevee's! A female Eevee's!"

"You serious? Took them long enough!" An odd response came from underground. I turned back and glanced questioningly at Blue. He shrugged and mirrored my own confused expression. We both stared expectantly at the huge, garishly pink tent in front of us.

"Oi! They're here! Come on, let's go greet'em!"

Suddenly, the earth began to shake, followed by a series of loud clunking noises. Blue hurriedly rushed up and pulled me off the grille and back onto solid dirt. The strange mechanical noises began to get louder and louder, scaring several Pidgey and Taillow out from wherever they were sleeping. They squawked angrily as they flew away from the tent, annoyed by the noise.

"Blue, look!" I pointed at the huge, wooden gate that was placed underneath the pink tent. It began to emit a low groaning noise as it began to shudder and shake. Then, it slowly began to move upward into the top of the tent.

"It's like the teeth of some great big monster," Blue remarked humorously as we watched the gate slowly vanish into the pink canvas. "maybe we're being invited to be its lunch!"

"Stop it Blue!" I whispered hastily. The sight of the huge wooden gate sliding up on its own like that was scary enough! "You're making it scarier than it already is!"

Blue grinned and squeezed his paws around my cheeks, pretending that his paws were the monster's teeth. I shook my head exasperatedly and shoved him off. He chuckled and patted my head. I gave him a little frown in response. Though, I did feel a little relieved. His joke made the terrifying gate feel a little less scary now.

After a few more seconds of groaning and clanking, the wooden gate finally disappeared completely into the tent's canvas. Blue and I slowly inched our way over to the now – open tent, peering cautiously inside.

"Hello...?" I nervously greeted to whoever that might be inside, "Is anyone there?"

Silence. I looked nervously at Blue for help. He took a step forward and shouted, "Hey, anyone in there?"

More silence. Blue glanced back at me and shrugged in a defeated manner.

"Maybe we're supposed to just go inside?" Blue suggested, pointing a paw at the entrance, "I don't see anyone in there from where I'm standing."

"I... I suppose," I took a deep gulp and walked past Blue, following his paw. True to his word, the interior of the tent did look empty. In fact, now that I had a better look inside, the tent looked oddly small. All I could see inside was the backside of the canvas along with several wooden posts that held up the tent. The floor was completely covered up with an almost obscene amount of multicolored rugs and carpets, all of which were of different sizes and color. Other than that though, there was nothing else visible inside the tent. No other rooms, no Pokémon, nothing. Just carpets and posts.

I tilted my head in confusion at this fact. How can such a large guild like Wigglytuff's have such a tiny headquarters? I've always imagined them to have a much larger base, fitting for a guild so well known across the frontier. It just didn't make sense.

But, as I was pondering this discrepancy, a sudden gust of wind came billowing out from inside the tent. Startled, I quickly covered up my face with my paws and shut my eyes. I felt my fur being ruffled wildly by the sudden breeze. It wasn't a strong gust, but it was surprising nonetheless!

"Fée!" All of a sudden, I found myself being picked up by something that felt like leaves. I opened my eyes and saw, right in front of my face, a gigantic yellow flower.

"Eek!" Startled, I accidentally kicked out with my back legs and knocked the flower away from me. I fell back onto the dirt, hitting the ground hard with my behind. "Ouch!"

"Ooooh! That was a strong kick, ouch!" The flower grumbled in a pained voice as she slowly pulled herself off the ground. As she stood back up, I suddenly recognized her.

"Aah! Sunflora!" My eyes widened in surprise as I pointed a paw at her, "What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean, silly?" Sunflora beamed at me, evidently pleased that I recognized her, "I work here! Didn't I tell you yesterday?"

"You...work here?" I glanced over to the pink tent, then back at Sunflora. My face was that of bewilderment as I tried to puzzle out what she said.

"Oh my gosh, you're so adorable when you're confused like that!" Sunflora squealed gleefully as she rushed over and pulled me into a great, leafy hug again, "I'm so happy that we met again, Fée!"

"Geeh!" I coughed as she rubbed her big, flowery head against my cheek, scattering pollen everywhere. I struggled to get out of her hug, but, for a Pokémon that had leaves for arms, she had a surprisingly strong grip!

I turned my head over to Blue, desperately trying to signal for his help. But, instead of rushing over to my aid, I saw him standing at the side, trying to cover his laughing face with his paw as he watched me struggle with the friendly flower. Thanks for nothing, Blue!

"Alright, alright," Suddenly, two beefy, blue – scaled arms wedged their way between me and Sunflora, separating us with a single shove. My freedom now secured, I quickly ran behind Blue and peered cautiously at the huggy Sunflora, who was looking incredibly dejected at being pulled away from me.

I glanced up at my savior. It was Loudred, the other Pokémon I met yesterday along with Sunflora. He gave me a huge grin, courtesy of his gigantic mouth, and planted himself between me and Sunflora.

"So you're finally here, eh, Fée?" He said cheerfully, folding his arms, "I see you've brought your little friend too."

"Morning," Blue replied casually, holding up his paw as a greeting.

"Good morning, Loudred," I greeted him from behind Blue's legs. Still keeping a wary eye on Sunflora, who still looked like she wanted to give hugs, I moved away from Blue and sat down.

"Um... Loudred?" I spoke nervously, "Can you explain something for me?"

"Shoot."

I tilted my head, confused, "Sunflora said she worked here, and I'm assuming you do too." The two of them nodded. "So... does that mean you're both explorers associated with Wigglytuff's Guild?"

"Bingo!" Sunflora beamed at me as she clapped her leaves together, "You're completely right! Oh my gosh!"

"Well, we did tell her yesterday, didn't we?" Loudred stated plainly, not sharing his partner's enthusiasm at all, "I mean, we even did the whole Guild's Honor thing in front of you and Marill."

"Oh...!" Suddenly, memories of yesterday's events came flooding back to me. I remember when Sunflora and Loudred ran up to me and Marill during the hectic search for Azurill. They did say something about being apart of a guild. But, the situation was so frantic at the time that I didn't completely register what they said.

"See, you remember now, right?" Sunflora sprung upright and held her leafy arm in front of her chest and suddenly recited in a serious voice, "' I promise you! On our honor as members of Wigglytuff's Guild, that she'll be back home safe and sound!' Or something like that! Oooh, I've always wanted to say that!"

Loudred shrugged, "Even though we weren't the ones who saved that girl in the end anywa – gah!" He flinched as Sunflora smacked him on the arm with her leaf. He winced as he rubbed his arm gingerly.

"Speaking of that!" Sunflora cheerfully said, ignoring her partner's angry glare, "What happened in the end anyway? When we finished pasting up all those posters, we were suddenly told that the evil outlaw was captured! Ooh, it was so exciting! But frustrating too! Because then we had to take those posters down and..."

"I'm assuming you found her in the end, eh Riolu?" Loudred shoved Sunflora aside as she began to run off on a tangent, "I can tell by the way you're all banged up... well, more banged up than usual."

"Something like that," Blue brushed away his words with a wave of his paw, "I just punched the guy a bit. That's all."

"Hahaha!" Loudred boomed, laughing loudly as he slapped Blue on the shoulder, making him wince in pain, "You don't have to be modest! We all know what went down on Mount Bristle, Riolu!"

"Eh?"

Loudred winked at us and said with a jovial tone, "That Staraptor from Machoke's Guild came around and announced to everyone what you did last night, Riolu! Isn't that right, Sunflora?"

"Ooh, that's right," Sunflora agreed, nodding her flowery head, "But I wanted to hear it from their mouths, Loudred!" She eagerly turned back to us, wringing her leafy arms together expectantly. I glanced over to Blue, who looked as though he wanted to just run away. I guess he didn't really want to talk about it.

"Um...!" I quickly interjected to help Blue, "I... we kinda want to register as apprentices at Wigglytuff's Guild. Do you two mind showing us how?"

"Ooh!" Sunflora suddenly turned toward Loudred and clapped her leaves together, "That's right! I totally forgot!"

"Oh, right," Loudred smacked his head with his hand, "you're finally going to apply as an apprentice Fée. Congratulations!"

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"We've all been watching you for a while, Fée," Loudred said, grinning with Sunflora, "you've been coming to the guild for a while haven't you?"

"Every day," Sunflora added gleefully, "we've been waiting for you to finally pluck up the courage and walk up to us and ask for apprenticeship! Ooh, I was rooting for you the whole time, Fée!"

"You mean.. you've all been watching me?!"

A look of horror appeared on my face as Loudred and Sunflora nodded cheerfully. I felt my face burn bright red as a gigantic tidal wave of embarrassment crashed down upon me. A strange noise escaped my throat as I hurriedly ducked behind Blue and stuffed my searing hot face into his tail. I've never felt so embarrassed in my entire life! This is the worst!

"Ooh, she's embarrassed now!" I heard Sunflora say gleefully, "She's so adorable!"

"I don't think we should've told her that we were watching!" Loudred replied, laughing uproariously

I groaned out of anguish as I clung tightly to Blue's tail. I felt him pat me sympathetically on my head, making me feel even more abashed. I shoved my face even deeper into his fluffy tail in response. If I exposed my blushing face to the air now, I felt as though I might go up in flames!

* * *

"We're sorry, we're sorry!" Sunflora and Loudred both clasped their hands together and bowed down in front of me. It was an odd sight, seeing two accomplished explorers beg for forgiveness.

"Hmph!" I turned my head away from the grovelling pair. A slight tinge of red was still present on my face, even after a few minutes had passed. Blue just grinned silently at me as I continued to stick close to his hooked tail.

"You can repay her by showing us into the guild," Blue suggested, pointing at the pink tent. He rubbed his chin with his paw, "I've been wondering. Where'd you two come out from anyway? All I can see in there are rugs and junk."

"Oh!" Sunflora pulled her head off the ground, trailing a little bit of dirt from her petals. She enthusiastically leapt up and walked over to the tent's entrance and pointed inside with her leaf.

"This isn't the actual guild house, oh no." Sunflora explained, "If it was, then we'd have no space to work or sleep!"

She ducked past the tent flaps and held up one of the carpets. Curious, Blue and I inched closer to the tent and watched the flowery Pokémon fiddle around with something underneath the rugs. With a shout of exertion, Sunflora suddenly threw up her arms. Immediately, a gust of wind burst out from inside the tent again, making Blue and I cover our eyes out of shock.

"You'll want to keep your eyes open for what happens next." Loudred commented from somewhere beside us. Deciding to take the chance, I gingerly opened my eyes against the gusting wind.

It was an amazing sight. All the carpets and rugs were flying around the inside of the tent, circling around Sunflora like a strange, clothy tornado. Then, one by one, the carpets stacked themselves up in neat stacks around the sides of the tent. But, what really amazed me was what was underneath all those carpets.

"Is that... a tree?" Well, it wasn't exactly a tree. At the center of the tent was the top of a gigantic tree trunk. The wooden surface pretty much made up the entire floor of the tent. Hundreds, maybe thousands of tree rings were present on the trunk, showing just how old the tree probably was before it was chopped down.

"Mmhm!" Sunflora nodded gleefully as she saw our stupefied faces, "That's not the end of it though! Just watch!"

Sunflora stood at the center of the tree stump, where all the rings originated from. Then, with a loud shout, she stomped the tree trunk with her foot. Suddenly, a loud reverberating noise echoed from within the trunk, followed by multiple repeated _clunk_ing noises. Blue and I glanced at each other, confused and wondering what was happening as the noises became louder and louder.

Then, the loudest _clunk_ sound rang out and the ground began to shudder. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it. Parts of the massive tree trunk began to sink down in blocks. Piece by piece, they slid down like parts of a puzzle. Sunflora grinned as she quickly stepped off the tree trunk and trotted over to us.

"It's... it's a staircase!" Blue whispered in a stunned voice.

He was right. Every block that fell down on the tree trunk stopped after sliding a short distance, where it then locked into place by some strange mechanism. After a while, the noise stopped and the ground stopped shaking. Cautiously, Blue and I walked into the tent and stared down at the newly – formed staircase.

"Wow..." It was incredible. Large pieces of the tree trunk had sunk down, forming a magnificent spiral staircase that lead down into the ground. It was surprisingly wide as well. It had just enough space for two or more Pokémon to pass through, side by side. Nervously, I stepped down one of the wooden blocks. To my great relief, it felt incredibly sturdy and solid.

"Heh, impressed?" Loudred said as he casually strode down the stairs past Blue and I, "I don't know who made this contraption, but it sure is convenient!"

"That's right, ooh!" Sunflora patted me on the back as she followed Loudred down, "Hurry up down, Fée! Blue! I wanna show you around our headquarters! It'll be so much fun! Eek!"

I glanced up at Blue, who was also testing the steps out for himself. Once he was sure that the blocks weren't going to suddenly give out from underneath him, he grinned and began to slowly make his way down. Noticing that he was still moving a little slow from his injured leg, I hurriedly wedged myself underneath his right arm.

"I'll help you down, Blue," I offered as I allowed him to lean against me.

"Thanks, Fée," He grinned at me as we slowly made our way down the stairs.

* * *

"Welcome to Wigglytuff's Guild!"

Sunflora and Loudred cheered enthusiastically as we moved off the last step. I glanced behind us, back at the staircase. It was still housed within the huge tree trunk, but now, as we've gone deeper into the ground, I could see it in full.

The staircase was built within a massive, massive tree. Parts of the tree trunk had been carved out to allow for entrances or windows, but it was still mostly intact. The staircase lead down into a large, hollow cavern made mostly out of stone and packed dirt. The cavern was surrounded by vines and huge, thick roots coming from the ceiling. As I looked up, I saw the bottom of the massive tree. Its roots spread out across the ceiling of the cavern and all around the walls like a great, wooden protector.

Sunflora walked over to where we were and gently knocked on the bottom step of the staircase. Immediately, the loud clanking noise started up again. Blue and I watched, mesmerized, as the staircase began to slowly recede itself back into the ceiling. Tons of moving bits and pieces worked hard to pull the multiple wooden blocks back into the tree. I couldn't understand the mechanics behind such a wondrous device, but it amazed me nonetheless.

After the staircase was completely reabsorbed into the ceiling, Sunflora walked up to Blue and I and gestured around us with a big smile on her face.

"So? What do you think?" She said anxiously, "Isn't it roomy?"

Roomy wasn't the word I would've used to describe it. The entire place was huge! Even though we were standing inside a deep cavern, large holes have been dug out in the walls, allowing for sunlight to stream into the place. Tons of doors, stairs and archways were carved into the walls, leading to what I assume deeper into the cavern.

I slowly paced around the room, taking in the atmosphere. Comfy chairs, soft cushions and wooden tables were strewn all around the place, giving the cavern a homely feel. It actually kinda resembled a clubhouse more than an actual guildhouse! The floor of the cavern was oddly soft. I took a look down at my feet and realized that the ground was completely covered in soft, leafy grass, with patches of flowers scattered around every few feet. It was absolutely gorgeous!

Then, as I looked up from the ground, I heard a quiet rumbling noise. I turned my head to the direction of the noise and found a small waterfall spilling out from the ceiling. At the foot of the waterfall was a small pool of crystal clear water.

"Wow...!" I ran over to the small pond and peered over the side, staring at my reflection. But, as I continued to look down in the water, something fast and red came zooming up from the depths, shattering my reflected face into pieces with ripples.

"Eek!" I fell backwards out of surprise as that mysterious red thing came flying out of the water, scattering water droplets everywhere. I shook the water off my face and quickly turned around. The Pokémon made a clacking noise with its huge, pincer like hands as it addressed me.

"Hey, hey, hey! Who're you?" The Pokémon said in a suspicious tone. It pointed one of its sharp, crab – like pincer at me and stated, "Are you an intruder? If you are, you'll have to face the might of Crawdaunt!"

"E – eh?!" My eyes widened out of fear as I quickly held up my paws, trying to mollify the crabby Pokémon, "N – no, I'm no intruder!"

"Hmmm?!" The red Pokémon narrowed its eyes and scuttled closer to me on its six, thin legs. It eyed me skeptically and opened his right pincer in front of my face, "I've never seen you around here before, Eevee! I can't trust what you say!"

"Mmmhh!" I tried to say something in response, but the sight of his sharp pincer right in front me, water dripping ominously off its sharp points made me lose my ability to talk.

"Bwahaha! The mighty Crawdaunt terrifies yet another intrud – gyeegh!"

Suddenly, the red Pokémon was lifted into the air by a blue paw on his back. I gaped as the mighty Crawdaunt flailed around, moving its six little legs in a desperate attempt to move.

"Let go of me!" He shouted indignantly, "I'm the mighty Crawdaunt! You can't treat me this way! Hey, hey!"

"Fée, are you alright?" Blue ignored the furious Pokémon in his grasp and extended me his other paw. I took it and let him pull me back onto my feet. I stared warily at the angry Crawdaunt as he tried to reach down and pinch Blue's arm, but he couldn't quite reach him with his short pincers.

"Thanks Blue..." I took a deep breath and tried to calm down. Sunflora and Loudred came running over. Loudred hurriedly snatched the red Pokémon out of Blue's paws and held him upside down by one of his tiny legs.

"Corphish, what did I tell you about scaring visitors!" Sunflora chided him angrily. She prodded Crawdau – Corphish in the face with her leaf and glared at him.

"Sunflora, Loudred!" Corphish said in a friendlier tone. A complete shift from his earlier self, "How're you two doing?"

"Ooh! Don't just change the subject!" Sunflora scolded angrily, but Corphish had already freed himself from Loudred's grasp and flipped himself onto the grassy floor. He held up his two large pincers and pointed them at Blue and I.

"You two, we got intruders, hey, hey!" He said in an enthusiastic voice. Evidently, he completely disregarded Sunflora's words from before. Blue growled threateningly as Corphish clacked his pincers at us, "Come on, we gotta shoo them out before the Grandmaster of all things Naggy sees them!"

"You numbskull," Loudred covered his face with his hand and shook his head, "we _WANT_ them to meet the Grandmaster."

Blue and I covered our ears as Loudred blasted a sudden sonic boom at us with his voice. Corphish, however looked completely unaffected by Loudred's voice.

He turned around and said, in a flabbergasted voice, "What?! You mean to tell me these two are...?" Corphish seemed to be trying to figure out something in his mind. He slowly turned back and stared as us with narrowed eyes. After silently staring at us for nearly a minute, his eyes widened and he clacked his pincers together wildly.

"Hey, hey! You didn't tell me we were having new recruits today!" He jumped up and clacked his pincers loudly.

Loudred sighed exasperatedly, "You didn't let us tell you anything before you went and called them intruders," He bonked Corphish over the head with his fist.

"Gyeh!" Corphish cried out in pain and covered his head with his pincers. Sunflora sighed and walked over to me.

"Sorry about that, Fée," She apologized, "Corphish gets a little excited when he sees new faces."

"Hey, hey!" Corphish spun around and clacked his pincers indignantly at Sunflora, "My name ain't Corphish! It's the mighty Crawdaunt!"

"Sure, and my name is the supreme Exploud," Loudred said, rolling his eyes.

"Crawdaunt?" I echoed, looking a little confused, "Is that another Pokémon?"

"It's his evolved form," Sunflora explained, looking a little amused, "Corphish has been looking forward to evolution for a long time. He's been rather taken to calling himself Crawdaunt in anticipation for his eventual evolution."

"I see. Evolution, huh? That's pretty cool!"

"Hey, hey! Someone understands!" He said cheerfully, "You and me, we're gonna be great friends, I can tell!"

Loudred snorted, "Says the Pokémon that nearly snipped her nose off earlier."

"Hey, no hard feelings, eh?" Corphish winked at me, "We're cool now, right? Now that I know that you and your grabby friend ain't intruders, right?"

"Grabby?" Blue said as he folded his arms.

"It's okay, I forgive you," I smiled and looked at Blue. He looked a little uncertain, but I gave him a reassuring nod. He sighed and held out his paw to Corphish.

"Y'know, now that I have a closer look..." Corphish narrowed his eyes as he placed his heavy pincer on Blue's paw, shaking it, "You're a Riolu, ain't ya?"

Blue gave me a quick look before responding, "I suppose. I've been called that by a lot of Pokémon, so, probably."

"Hey, hey, why do you sound so unsure?" Corphish chuckled at Blue's ambiguous answer, "I've heard a lot about Riolu!"

"From Loudred?" Sunflora piped up suspiciouslly, shooting Loudred a wary look.

"Yep, from Loudred!" Corphish replied cheerfully, "He told me that Riolu were total freaks who prefer to stay within their dark caves and be boring old loners! You don't look anything like that though, hey, hey!"

My ears perked up at what he said. I've never seen a Riolu before I met Blue. Not to mention, none of the books I've read in Mr. Mime's library ever talked about Riolu, so I don't know much about what other Riolu were like, other than Blue.

Corphish's words – and by extension, Loudred's – made me frown a bit. I remembered Loudred saying something similar back at the restaurant, and it was confusing then as well. I looked over at Blue, wondering how he felt about his species being called such rude words. To my surprise, he didn't look insulted at all. In fact, there was a strangely curious glint in his eye as he listened to Corphish.

"Is that so?" Blue replied eagerly, "What else did he say?"

"Well!" Corphish looked thrilled to be asked questions, "He also told me that Riolu were all violent weirdos. Total fighting maniacs, he said. Ain't that right, Loudred?"

"Guuuhh!" Loudred couldn't respond. He was too busy being dragged away by the ear by a furious Sunflora.

"You and I are gonna have a big talk about spreading nasty rumors, Loudred!" She scolded angrily, "Corphish, you go and introduce those two to the Guildmaster. I'm gonna be busy for a while!"

With her final order still lingering in the air, she forcefully dragged Loudred off into one of the doorways and disappeared from sight. Corphish broke out in wild laughter.

"Hoo boy, those two will never get along, will they?" He asked us. Blue and I just looked at each other and shrugged. Corphish wiped a tear from his eye and said, "Well alright then! If we're gonna be apprentices together, we'd better get you all signed up with the guild!"

"You're an apprentice too?" I said in a surprised tone. Corphish nodded as we followed him across the grassy cavern.

"That's right, and so's Sunflora and Loudred!" He said with a certain pride in his tone.

"Oh right," I nodded in agreement, "they said something about that to me before."

"Lotsa Pokémon mistake those two to be real explorers," Corphish added, "I don't blame'em. Those two are the best of the best here in Wigglytuff's. Ain't nobody better at exploring than those two. Well, maybe except the Guildmaster, hey, hey!"

"So why are they still apprentices?" I interjected with a question, "If they're so good at what they do, shouldn't they be full fledged explorers now?"

"Hey, hey, I dunno!" Corphish replied, "They have their own reasons, I suppose. Ain't my business to poke a pincer into theirs!"

Corphish halted in front of a large, double door embedded in the wall. I looked up at the massive door. It was made out of a dark, rich – colored wood. The words "Guildmaster's Office" was expertly carved on the surface of the left door, while the words "Wigglytuff &amp; Chatot" were embossed on the right.

"Here we are! The Guildmaster's office!" Corphish cheerfully stated, pointing his pincer at the magnificent doors. "Just head on in, don't be shy!"

Hesitation and nervousness flooded my body as I stared at the great wooden gate in front of me. Somehow, this door made me feel more anxious than facing off against Koffing and Zubat. The weight of the bag around my neck seemed like it was getting heavier and heavier as I stood there, staring at the door. I gulped and tried to move my paw up to knock on the wood, but my leg wouldn't move. It was like my feet had turned into stone all of a sudden.

"Hey, hey! You alright?"

Corphish's words barely reached my ears. My heart was pounding while thousands of negative thoughts raced through my mind. Run, run away! This is too scary! I'm afraid! I shook my head, trying to get rid of these terrified thoughts. I didn't come all this way just to give up now!

Suddenly, I felt a paw on my head. I looked up and saw Blue smiling at me. He comfortingly rubbed the top of my head, as if he was trying to calm down a child. As his paw touched the ribbon tied onto my right ear, I felt a strange warmth flood through my body, washing away all the fear and anxiety that was building up inside my heart. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, summoning up all my willpower.

"Alright," I said in a confident voice, "I'm ready."

Slowly, I reached up with my paw. I placed it against the solid, wood door and knocked three times, announcing my presence. At first, nobody responded, making me tilt my head in confusion. But then, about a second later, a rumbling noise erupted from behind the door.

"Oop!" Corphish yelped as he quickly scuttled away from the entrance. The reason why became crystal clear as the door began to slowly open out on its own. Blue and I stepped back, allowing the door to fully open up ahead of us.

_Boom!_ The two heavy wooden doors struck the cavern walls forcefully, making dust rain down from the ceiling. From beyond the entrance, all I could see was darkness. For some reason, there appeared to be no windows or light inside the Guildmaster's office. I gulped as I took a step forward into the abyss, with Blue following behind me.

Once we were fully immersed in the darkness, the double doors suddenly closed behind us with a loud crashing noise, enclosing us inside the pitch – black room. I quickly turned around and placed my paws against the doors in a panic. Why did the doors close? Was this a trap? What was going on?"

"Calm down Fée," Blue said calmly as he continued to pat me on the head.

"How can you stay calm in a situation like this?" I retorted, a little hysterically.

"Well, we're not alone in here," Blue said plainly as he pointed forward with his other paw.

"Eh?!" I looked toward where his paw was pointing. It was difficult, considering the lack of light in the room. As my eyes slowly adjusted though, I could see something large and brightly colored in the distance. In fact, the thing appeared to be growing larger and larger by the second...

Suddenly, a pair of large blue circles loomed out of the darkness at us.

"Eeeek!" I leapt backward out of terror. All the strength and willpower that I summoned earlier seemed to vanish as I rushed behind Blue, hiding myself from the horrible sight.

"Yoooooooom..."

All of a sudden, an odd, drawn out noise began to echo around the room. It got louder and louder as it continued, forcing me to cover my ears with my paws. I felt Blue bend down a little as he tried to cover his ears from the noise as well.

"–TAH!"

An explosion of sound, light and force erupted from within the room, blasting away my senses and leaving me confused and dazed. I fell flat on my belly from dizziness, my eyes rolling around uncontrollably in my head. The room was spinning at a ridiculous speed, making me feel incredibly nauseous.

"Oogh..." I heard Blue groan from somewhere beside me. He must've felt the pain from the explosion as well.

"Welcome, new friends!" A loud, chipper voice rang out from somewhere around me. I staggered up to my feet, using Blue's tail as leverage.

The room was completely lit up now. Torches on the wall that were unlit earlier were now flickering with a bright, warm light. Darkly colored curtains were blown off their hangers, revealing a series of large windows on the other side of the room. Gleaming, glittering and other shiny objects were strewn around everywhere, reflecting light all around the office. With all these light sources scattered around, it was as if the darkness never existed in the first place!

I groaned as I tried to refocus my self. My eyes were still blurred, and a dull ringing sound kept buzzing inside my ear, making it hard for me to find my balance.

"What... who...?" Even my words were coming out unfocused and confused. I shook my head and slapped my cheeks with my paws. The stinging feeling on my face seemed to help, as the room began to slowly stop spinning around.

"Guildmaster, how many times do I have to tell you to use your powers in moderation?" An unfamiliar voice rang out from somewhere above me. It sounded grumpy, yet had a strangely melodic tone to it.

"Ooh, but they're new friends! I wanted them to be impressed!" Replied the first voice.

"They wont be impressed if they're vomiting all over the floor," said the second voice sarcastically, "and neither would I."

Slowly, I began to regain my senses. I pushed myself off Blue's body and tried to look at the speakers. I gasped. It was a large, pink colored Pokémon. His body resembled that of a particularly cheerful looking marshmellow. Two long, floppy ears extended out from the top of his head, surrounding the sides of a fluffy, curly tuft of hair. He stared at me with great interest with his blue, saucer shaped eyes.

"Hello friend! It's nice to see that you've recovered!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff said with a gleeful little wave of his small, nub – like hands. He waddled up to me and patted me down, dusting away the dirt found its way on my fur. Then, after he was satisfied with my cleanliness, he waddled over to Blue and started doing the same to him.

"Gu... Gu..." My voice wouldn't come out. I continued to stutter as I gaped at the cheerful pink Pokémon bounce around the bright room happily. "Gu... Gu..."

"Oh my, I think you might've broke her, Guildmaster," The second voice turned out to be a small, colorful bird Pokémon. He shook his black head in a disdainful manner at me and flew onto a small wooden post erected on the floor.

"Oh no!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff looked genuinely shocked at the bird's words, "Chatot, what do we do then? How do we fix them?"

"Buh...?" Blue looked like he was slowly regaining his use of his senses as well. He shook his head wildly and covered his face with his paws.

"Well, first of all, I'd suggest you stop shouting in their ears," the bird – Chatot – advised, "and secondly, how about you give them some time to rest from your little attack, hm?"

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, Chatot!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff shouted, making Blue and I wince from the volume, "We'll let our new friends rest for a while! Then we can talk!"

Through the painful buzzing in my ears, I could just barely make out an exasperated sigh coming from Chatot.

* * *

"Are you two feeling better now?"

I rubbed my ears with my back leg, trying to see if they still worked. Thankfully, I could hear again without that painful droning noise in my head. I nodded at the little bird Pokémon standing in front of us, confirming that I was alright.

"How about you?" Chatot asked Blue, who still looked a little green in the face. Blue held up a paw and straightened his back as he took a deep breath. After shaking his head a little, he looked at Chatot and nodded as well.

"Very well then," Chatot nodded his head in response to us and fluttered back to his wooden post, where he stood and stared at us with narrowed eyes.

Nervously, I looked around the now – lit office. It was crammed to the breaking point with objects and knick – knacks of all kinds, and none of it were neatly put away at all. Instead of being an office, the room resembled a treasure hoard instead, with valuable – looking objects like trophies, coins or whatever thrown all over the place in a haphazard fashion.

A handsome desk was placed at the far end of the room, right in between all of the windows on the wall. Piles and piles of paper were strewn all over the desk as well as – for some strange reason – a great mound of shiny apples. As I was pondering about the apples, I saw Guildmaster Wigglytuff bound up to his desk and pick up one of the apples. Within seconds, the apple was within his mouth and gone forever.

"So, would you two like to explain why you're here?" Chatot's words snapped me out of my distracted staring. I quickly turned back and faced the bird, who was still eyeing us suspiciously, "If you're one of those door – to – door sales Pokémon, we don't want anything. The same goes if you're a trying to have us sign any surveys."

I quickly shook my head, "N – no, we're not sales Pokémon or surveyors, Mr. Chatot! That's not why we're here at all!"

"Then what are you here for? Beggars looking for a donation?" Chatot said distrustfully, "If that's the case, then off you go!"

I shook my head again and glanced over to Blue, who was glaring at the bird silently. Sighing, I held out my right paw to my chest and told Chatot honestly the reason why we're here.

"Blue and I... we're here to apply for apprenticeship," I said earnestly, "we want to be trained as an exploration team, Mr. Chatot."

"W – what?!" The bird cried out suddenly, startling me, "An exploration team? You two?!"

"Um... yes, if you would pl –"

"Why, that changes everything!" Chatot's expression made a complete switcheroo. The doubtful look on his face had changed to a big, almost alarmingly friendly smile, "You should've said so in the first place, little Eevee! Ha!"

"Um...?" I looked over to Blue for help again. It didn't matter though, since even he looked absolutely bewildered at Chatot's sudden change in demeanor.

"I'm quite surprised that you've made this decision at such a young age! And at our guild too, no less!" Chatot continued gleefully. He covered his face with his wing and muttered something under his breath. I strained my ears to try and make out what he was saying, "...and with so many potential recruits leaving due to the rigorousness of our training, this is quite a boon...!"

"Excuse me...?" I said, spooking Chatot's head out from under his wing, "Is the training really that hard?"

"Oh! Um!" Apparently, I wasn't supposed to hear that, as Chatot quickly flapped his wings around and hastily said, "No, no! Our training is as easy as it can be! Ha ha! Whatever could've given you that idea, Eevee?"

"Actually, my name is Fée," I said, bowing my head politely. I held up a paw next to Blue and introduce him, "and this is my friend, Blue."

"'Blue...?'" Chatot repeated doubtfully. He narrowed his eyes and stared at Blue, "Is that your name?"

"Mmhm," Blue replied, shrugging, "is there something wrong?"

"No! No, not at all!" Chatot quickly withdrew his suspicious gaze and coughed to clear his throat, "Well then! Fée! Blue! Allow me to introduce myself."

He extended his right wing and held it over his chest, "I am Chatot, assistant and second – in – command to the Guildmaster as well as an accomplished explorer of my own, if I do say so myself, ho ho!"

"G... good to meet you, Mr. Chatot." I was a little taken aback by just how pompous he was, but I decided not to let that show on my face. Blue just nodded respectfully at the bird, but kept silent.

"Now, how about you go and tell me why you decided to choose our guild for apprenticeship? This isn't a trick question or anything, it's just for my own personal curiosity!"

"Well, I've heard a lot of great things about Wigglytuff's Guild," I glanced over to the Guildmaster, who was still busying himself with the pile of apples on his desk, "and I thought that if I ever wanted to be an explorer, my best best would be to apprentice here, Mr. Chatot."

"Well said, Fée!" Chatot responded jovially, "I'm quite glad that you think so highly of us. I'm truly grateful to receive your respect."

"Thank you," I bowed my head again, feeling a little embarrassed at being praised by him.

Chatot turned his head over to Blue, "How about you then, Blue? I see that you're a Riolu, but let it be known that we don't discriminate by Pokémon here in Wigglytuff's Guild. Ho, ho!"

I saw Blue give a little smirk at Chatot's words. He must've been thinking about what Loudred and Corphish were saying earlier. Did Chatot not know about them? Or was Chatot just trying to be cordial to Blue? I wasn't sure.

"Well, I'm not too sure what explorers or what exploration teams are, to be honest with you." Blue admitted, scratching his nose sheepishly, "Fée explained some of it to me, but it's still mostly confusing to me."

"Ah well, you don't have to worry about that!" Chatot replied in a friendly voice, "With our training regimen, even the most clueless Riolu can become a skilled explorer in no time! Ho, ho!"

I saw Blue's eye twitch a bit as Chatot continued to laugh. I shook my head and sighed. Maybe I should go ask Sunflora about why so many Pokémon treat Blue like this. It's strange. I've never seen anyone talk about any other Pokémon species like this before. Only Riolu.

"Now that we're all acquainted with each other," Chatot said. Blue snorted sarcastically as Chatot made a large show out of clearing his throat, "I would like to know one more thing from you two before we register you as an official apprentice at our guild."

"One more thing?" I asked, confused.

"That's right. This is the most important tidbit of all, so think about it wisely." Chatot smiled and held out his right wing. I gulped nervously. What kind of question could this be? If I answered it wrong, would they kick me out? Agh, I don't wanna think about such things right now!

"Ahem, Fée, Blue," He said slowly, "I would like to ask you to tell me what your dreams are."

"Dreams?" Blue and I both spoke at the same time.

Chatot nodded and proceeded to explain, "That's right. The most important aspect of being an explorer is to have a strong, personal dream to strive for. It's what gives you the drive and willpower to succeed in becoming a great explorer, you see. So having your own dream is important not only for your success, but for your own personal growth!"

"I see!" I clapped my paws together. This was an important question, no doubt. Thankfully, I already knew my answer to that question. It was an answer that I've held inside of me for a long time.

I stood up and, without a single shred of nervousness, told Chatot, "My dream is to become a real explorer! I want to go out and see the world with my own eyes, and go on expeditions!"

"Very good!" Chatot laughed happily as he clapped his wings together, "I like your drive, Fée! You're going to go far, I believe!"

"Thank you, Mr. Chatot!" I blushed and sat back down, feeling relieved and happy.

"Now then, what about you?" Chatot gestured to Blue, who was silently pondering something by himself. He looked up and folded his arms in front of his chest.

"Hm... a dream, huh?" He said in a low voice, "A dream..."

"That's right, don't be shy!" Chatot urged him, "It's important to have a dream, and it's also important to let us know so we can help you achieve that goal!"

"Hm..." Blue closed his eyes. He seemed like he was deep in thought.

As I watched him think, I suddenly realized. Blue had never really spoken to me about his own desires or dreams before. Usually, when the topic comes up, he just listens while I tell him about my dreams. I thought back to the day I first met Blue. When I pulled him out of the ocean.

He said he lost his memories, but other than when we first met, it never seemed like a large deal to him. I wondered, what was he like before he lost his memories? Did he have a dream or a purpose that he was trying to reach before I found him in the ocean? How does he feel about that question? Would he be confused, or sad? All these worried thoughts kept swimming around my head as I waited for Blue to answer Chatot.

Suddenly, I felt Blue's paw around my body. He pulled me close to his side all of a sudden, jarring me out of my thoughts. I looked up at him, startled. He was grinning widely at Chatot, who was watching us curiously.

"My dream? I don't have one right now!" Blue announced proudly, "But, for now, I'm helping my friend fulfill hers. Is that good enough for you, Chatot?"

"B – Blue!" I stuttered, blushing furiously as I pushed myself out of his grasp. I shook my head and said, "That's not what he's talking ab– I mean, what about your own dreams?"

"My own dreams?" Blue repeated, looking a little confused, "I don't have any, Fée. Don't you remember? I can't remember a thing prior to two days ago. How can I have a dream if I can't remember anything?"

"But," It was exactly what I was worrying about earlier. I looked at him worryingly, "You can't just go and forget about yourself just to help me with my dream, Blue!"

"Why not?"

"Why... not?"

Blue shrugged, "It's not like I'll be able to come up with a dream of my own in just three days. So for now, I don't see why I can't help you until I remember a little bit more about myself."

"But... how do you feel about... not having a dream...?"

"How do I feel?" Blue cupped his chin with his paw and mulled over my question for a few seconds. "I guess I don't really care about it right now. After all, it's not like I can feel bad about something I can't even remember."

"Or maybe," Blue gained a snide look on his face, "you've gotten strong all of a sudden and you no longer need my help, Fée?"

He tapped the ribbon on my ear playfully. I blushed even harder as I tried to refute him, "No! No, that's not it at all! I'm not that strong yet! I still need you, Blue!"

I suddenly realized what I said and felt my entire face turn bright red. I buried my searing hot face in my paws and looked away while Blue began to laugh cheerfully.

Was it that fun to make me blush? It feels like everyone's picking on me lately, jeez!

"Well... I suppose that answer works, ahem." Chatot said slowly. He sounded a little hesitant. Maybe he was surprised by our sudden argument.

"Alright then, now that we know about your dreams and desires..." Chatot pointed a wing at Guildmaster Wigglytuff, "Guildmaster, would you mind doing the honors?"

"Mffph?" Guildmaster Wigglytuff looked startled at Chatot's sudden request. Several wet apples dropped onto the floor as he hurriedly tried to stuff them into his mouth.

"Guildmaster..." Chatot's wing appeared to wilt as he watched his boss scramble around the room, chasing after stray apples. He covered his face and shook his black – feathered head exasperatedly.

After taking a big gulp, Guildmaster Wigglytuff swallowed all of the apples he had in his mouth and quickly ducked behind his desk. Blue and I watched with interest as the Guildmaster began to fling out object after object out from underneath his desk. Golden coins, shiny cups, pretty orbs, moldy berries, cute dolls, dirty rocks, ornate sculptures and more flew out from that mess of a desk.

Eventually, the avalanche of garbage halted as Guildmaster Wigglytuff popped himself back out from underneath the desk, holding a small, gold – colored chest. The Guildmaster waddled over to Blue and I and placed the box in front of us.

The chest was squarish, almost in a perfect cube shape. It looked like it was made out of solid gold, but I noticed that parts of the box had a dull, grayish color, where the golden color appeared to be flaking off. The gold must've been applied to the box with paint instead of actually being made of gold. At the side of the box was a small clasp, made in the shape of a small, circular button with wings protruding out from the side.

"Well? What are you waiting for?" Guildmaster Wigglytuff eagerly said, "Open it up!"

I looked over to Blue, who gave me a curt nod. We both reached over to the box's clasp and unlocked it together. The box's lid swung open on its own, as if it was eager to show us what was inside.

"This is an explorer's kit!" I squealed as I saw what was inside the box. I quickly stuffed my paws inside and yanked out every item, holding them up one by one for Blue to see.

"That's right, it's an explorer's kit." Chatot said in a serious voice. He leapt down from his post and addressed me with his wing, "With this, you are now officially considered apprentices of Wigglytuff's Gui –"

"Look Blue! It's a Treasure Map! Only explorers get to own these!" I spoke with a childish glee as I held up a scroll of dusty parchment. Chatot looked miffed that I interrupted him, but I just couldn't contain myself, "It's a map of the entire frontier! Every forest, lake, mountain, cave and more are shown on this map!"

"Oh, and look! It's a real explorer's bag!" I yanked out the two brown bags that were stuffed inside the box. The bags were made out of thick and tough leather, completely unlike the soft, fragile cloth that my own bag was made of. The bags had the same clasp on them as the box. I eagerly opened up one of the bags and found it filled to the brim with all sorts of helpful tools.

"Ooh, it's a compass! And look, there's a canteen and berry pots and, oh wow! There's even some bandages and rope!"

My eyes were sparkling as I held up a length of rope for Blue to see. He chuckled and took it from my paws.

"It's just a rope, Fée," He sounded like he was having trouble trying to hold back his mirth, "you're so excited over this."

"How can I not be?" I replied indignantly as I shoved a compass in his face, "This is the stuff that real explorers use on expeditions! This is... this is..."

"A compass," Blue remarked as he pushed the compass away from his muzzle.

"No..." I shook my head and put the compass back into the bag, "This is the stuff I've dreamed of for my entire life, Blue."

I stood up and closed the bag, making sure the clasp was tightly refastened. Then, with my teeth, I pulled the bag over my head and wore it around my neck. It clashed horribly with my old, worn pink bag. But I didn't care. I wore both of the bags together, slowly spinning myself around and admiring the texture and weight of a real explorer's bag around my neck.

"It's a real explorer's bag...!" I whispered gleefully as I sat back down and embraced the bag, as if it was my own child, "And it's mine!"

"What are these, Fée?" I looked up from the bag and saw that Blue was holding two white objects in his paws.

"Aah!" I quickly rushed forward and snatched one of them out of his paws, startling him. I held it up into the air, where I could see it clearly in the sunlight.

It was a small, white badge. It's body was a perfect circle, with a gorgeous pink gem set in the center of it. At the sides of the badge were two beautifully sculpted wings. I flipped the badge around to look at the back. There was a small patch of cloth attached to it where I could write my name, proving that it was mine. Underneath that was a metal fastener so I could wear it, proving that I was a explorer. Finally, at the bottom was a miniscule carving that read 'WIGGLY TUFF GUILD.'

"This is an explorer's badge! A real explorer's badge!" I was awed by the little white badge. The old, broken badge that I had before couldn't hold a candle to the sheer beauty of the real thing! From the pure, white color of the body to the pretty little pink gem embedded in it... I simply couldn't contain my happiness from just holding it! And... best of all...

"It's mine!" I turned to Blue and gave him a great, big hug. His eyes bugged out as I squeezed him tightly and shouted in his ear, "It's mine! It's mine! It's mine!"

"Geeh! Fée! You're doing it again! Ouch!"

"It's mine! It's mine!"

I've never felt so happy before in my entire life!


	16. The Legendary Panacea Elixir

**• ****  
Chapter 15:**

**"**The Legendary Panacea Elixir****"

"Wow Fée! You look great!"

As Blue and I exited the Guildmaster's Office with our brand new explorers' kit, Sunflora, Loudred and Corphish crowded around us while wearing congratulatory looks on their faces. Sunflora rushed up to me and, before I could even react, pulled me into one of her overly friendly embraces again while Loudred and Corphish went up to Blue and shook his paw.

"Congratulations on becoming apprentices!" Sunflora said as she lifted me into the air, "Hurray for Fée! Hurray for Blue!"

"Geeh!" I struggled to escape her choking embrace, but it quickly became impossible once she began to spin around, blissfully unaware of my discomfort. I could see everyone else giving me pitying looks as we twirled around like an out of control Hitmontop.

"Sunflora, you're gonna send her to the infirmary before she even gets to start her training," Loudred snickered, "now come on, let the poor Eevee go and let's show our new buds around the place."

"Ooh, alright," Sunflora pouted as she reluctantly let me go. I gasped for breath as I quickly ran beside Blue, wary of being captured again by the friendly sunflower. Sunflora looked a little dejected when I ran away, but she quickly brightened back up as she clasped her leaves together.

"Ooh, I just had the most wonderful idea!" She addressed the two of us with a beaming smile on her face, "I'm gonna go grab a friend of mine, and we can show you around the base, Fée! Ooh, this is going to be exciting!"

She merrily skipped off toward one of the larger entrances around the cavern and waved at us to follow her before vanishing through the archway. Feeling excited and curious, I pranced across the cavern little child while Blue and the rest followed along. The two bags I was wearing bounced up and down as I skipped through the grassy floor.

The elation I felt from finally having my own explorer's pack was still flooding through my body. Every few seconds, I couldn't help but stop and glance down at the weighty brown bag at my side. It made me feel a sense of pride and happiness that I finally got my paws on something that I coveted so much.

Blue wasn't wearing his bag yet; his was still in the little golden box that the Guildmaster gave us. He said that his shoulders are too sore to wear something as heavy as an explorer's pack right now. I found it a bit of a shame. I'd imagine he'd look really handsome wearing an actual explorer's pack! He did, however, agree to wear his explorer's badge though!

Speaking of badges, I stopped and reached up to my right ear. The ribbon that Blue gave me was still there, but I had added something to it. My explorer's badge was attached to the little bow that he tied onto, making it look like something of a fancy fastener for it! I giggled a little bit to myself as I touched the pink gem on the badge. A flood of elation surged through my body. Even though I was just an apprentice, wearing this badge made me feel like I was a real explorer already!

"Come on you guys!" I turned around and urged the slow boys to hurry up with a big smile on my face, "Let's go!"

Giggling to myself, I skipped through the archway that Sunflora went through. I found myself standing at the end of a long, earthy hallway that was covered from top to bottom with tree roots. One massive root – originating from the tree trunk in the main cavern I assumed – raced across the ceiling and splintered off into a web of roots that crawled haphazardly down the walls and onto the floor. Small lanterns hung off the main root on the ceiling, filling the hallway with a bright, orange glow.

As I walked down the hallway, I noticed that there were several cute, rounded doors that were expertly fitted in the gaps between the roots. I walked up to one of the doors and found that there were several small letters carved into the wood. They appeared to be names.

"Loudred and Corphish and –"

Suddenly, the door opened up on its own, preventing me from reading out the last name. I quickly stepped back before it struck me on the nose. I took a quick peek past the door, but my view was obstructed by a stray root. Annoyed, I tried to take a step inside to get a closer look, but my foot suddenly collided into something soft.

"Golly, y – you're...!" The soft thing yelped something strange and hurriedly jumped back into the room. He quickly tried to close the door. Thankfully, he paused right before the wood smacked me in the muzzle. I saw the timid Pokémon poke around the side of the door, peeking out at me.

"I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" I quickly apologized to the Pokémon. Thankfully, the Pokémon shook its head and slowly revealed himself.

"I ain't hurt at all," The Pokémon said, looking a little sheepish, "just startled, is all. I wasn't expecting a Pokémon to appear in front of the door, Ms. Eevee."

He slowly moved the door aside and walked out of the room. He was a small, brown – furred Pokémon. He had a black snout with two large front teeth sticking out from the bottom, while the fur around his eyes was colored cream. His beady little eyes stared nervously at me. Maybe he was a little shy?

"My name's Bidoof, miss," he said in a quiet voice that was almost a whisper, "yup, yup."

"Thank goodness you weren't hurt," I sighed out of relief and smiled at Bidoof. He seemed like a nice Pokémon. I pointed a paw at the room he was in and asked, "do you mind if I come inside and take a look around?"

Bidoof gained a worried look on his face when I said that. He bit his lip as his eyes began to nervously dart around the hallway again. I looked around too, trying to see what he was so anxious about. But all I could find were more doors and the empty hallway around us. But and the rest of the boys were nowhere to be found. They must be taking their sweet time to follow me, I figured.

"Golly, I don't know," he said after he took another cursory look around the hall, "I'm ain't supposed to let other Pokémon inside without permission, Ms. Eevee."

"Really?" I said, my ears drooping out of disappointment. "I kinda wanted to see what was inside. It looks cozy in there."

"Gosh! I, um," Bidoof stuttered, looking startled. He shuffled his feet nervously before saying, "well... I reckon it's alright if you take a quick peek... but don't tell no body about this, alright?"

My ears perked up again at what he said. I clapped my front paws together and nodded enthusiastically at Bidoof. He turned around and slowly opened up the door to the room more so I could go inside.

"Wow..." It was a small, cozy – looking den. Soft, green moss and roots covered the walls, making the place look nice and homely. A table made out of a tree stump lied at the side of the room with a lit lantern sitting on top. Three bales of hay were placed on the floor, each looking like they've been slept in for a while.

Bidoof nervously paced around the room as I walked around, gazing curiously at everything. Loads of junk were piled up against the walls, making the entire room look rather messy. Half eaten meals were littered all over the floor. I constantly had to watch my step in case I accidentally trod on something disgusting.

Some colorful posters displaying various Pokémon were stuck up on the dirt walls. One poster was advertising a group of attractive – looking female Pokémon lead by a pretty Lopunny that was making a suggestive pose. Flustered by the risqué poster, I turned away from it and walked over to the table, where several books were piled on top of in a haphazard fashion..

"Oh wow!" I exclaimed, making Bidoof jump with a start. I picked up a thick, black – colored book that was lying on the table and showed it to him.

"Is this your copy of 'Dusknoir's Travels?' It's my favorite book!" I asked him excitedly. Bidoof nodded slowly as I smiled widely at him, "I had my own copy once," I said, reminiscing fondly about my own copy, "but I've read the book so many times that the pages and the covers all eventually fell apart."

I gave Bidoof a sheepish grin as I sat down, holding the book, "I've been looking to buy another copy for a while now, but the price at Kecleon's was so high that I gave up," I looked back at Bidoof's book and said, "to have a copy in such good quality... I'm a little jealous of you."

"Gosh..." He suddenly spoke up as I put the book back down on the table. When I turned back around to look at him, he had a small blush on his face, "erm... if you want, you can have that there book."

"Really?" My eyes widened out of surprise. I glanced at the black book in my paws for a second, but then I quickly shook my head, "No, I can't accept this." I put the book back on the table and smiled at Bidoof, "Thank you for your kind offer, Bidoof, but I can't just take something so expensive from someone I just met!"

"Naw, it's fine!" he quickly said, his face still blushing furiously for some reason, "I can't really make heads or tails of that book anyhow. It's too complicated for little old me."

"What do you mean?" I asked, tilting my head curiously, "You can read, right?"

"Yes'm," He said in a low, dejected voice, "but y'see, I can't really understand all these fancy words you townfolk use here, and that book is full of those complicated sentences and paragraphs that I just confuses the stuffin' out of me."

"That's a shame... I kinda wanted to know which chapter you liked the most..."

"I'm sorry, Ms. Eevee..."

I shook my head and smiled, "Nah, it's alright, Bidoof," I considered his words for a moment before realizing something. I looked up at the bucktoothed Pokémon and asked, "You said you couldn't understand the words that the townsfolk used... does that mean you're not from Treasure Town, Bidoof?"

He shook his head, "Naw, I came from the other side of the mountain range. All the way from the riversides, I did," Bidoof glanced down at his feet, looking away from me, "I arrived here at Treasure Town but a few weeks ago, yup, yup."

"From beyond the mountain range? That's pretty far away!" I said, impressed, "And you're already an apprentice here at Wigglytuff's Guild? You're incredible, Bidoof!"

"I s'pose," his face turned bright red as I heaped mounds of praise on the guy, "I'm still just an apprentice though. Just joined up here at Wigglytuff's but two days ago."

"Then we're fellow apprentices!" I announced cheerfully as I eagerly pointed at the badge on my ear. I puffed out my chest with a small hint of pride, "You said you became an apprentice two days ago? Well, I became an apprentice just a few moments ago!"

Bidoof looked a little surprised, but he just nodded and pointed at my ear with his paw, "I figured you were an apprentice from that there pretty bow you have on your ear." I blushed a little as I patted my bow thoughtfully. Bidoof gave me a bucktoothed smile and said, "Though, I didn't know you just joined right now. I thought you might've been visitin' from other guilds."

"Naw, I ain't from any other guild," Feeling playful, I went and copied his mannerisms, making him blush a little. "Wigglytuff's Guild was the only guild I ever thought about joining." I looked at him and asked, "What about you, Bidoof? Is there a reason why you picked Wigglytuff's Guild?"

"Gosh, it's pretty embarrassin' for me to say," Bidoof said as he lowered his head, "promise me you wont laugh?"

I held my paw up to my chest and said confidently, "I promise."

Bidoof blushed as he raised up his head, "Well, I trust you, Ms. Eevee." His cheeks reddened as he began to recount his story.

"Y'see, the reason why I picked Wigglytuff's Guild was because Wigglytuff's was the only guild that would take me in." He held up his paw and counted his stubby little fingers, "When I went over t' Machoke's, those super strong Pokémon just took a single look at little ol' me and laughed me out of the guildhouse, they did." A sad frown appeared on his face as he reminisced, "Then, when I went over to try at Kadabra's, I ended up failin' the test they gave me."

He sighed dejectedly as he shrugged, "I couldn' really understand the questions they put on that test. I lacked the smarts needed for those questions. So I ended up gettin' the worst grade out of all the applicants."

"I'm sorry to hear that..." I said sympathetically. He shook his head and waved his paws around frantically.

"Y' don't have to feel sorry for little ol' me, Ms. Eevee!" He said, "'course, I ended up walkin' all the way over to Wigglytuff's. They were my last chance to become an explorer, and I was willin' to get down on my belly and beg them to take me in as an apprentice."

"And then you became one!" I said with a grin.

He nodded and returned my smile, "That's right. That Chatot Pokémon was really scary at first, but when I told him that my wish was to become an explorer, he suddenly became downright friendly an' helpful!"

A big smile appeared on his face as he chuckled sheepishly. I noticed that he had a familiar look on his face as he talked about his wish. It was the same expression I wore when I dreamed about becoming an explorer. I giggled. I felt a strange connection between Bidoof and I, since we were both explorer enthusiasts!

"I'm the same, Bidoof!" I said cheerfully, stifling my giggles, "I've always wanted to be an explorer for as long as I remember."

"You too?" He sounded surprised at my reply, "Golly, what are the odds?"

We laughed together for a while. Even though we just met, I could tell that Bidoof was a nice, friendly Pokémon. I had a feeling that we could be good friends eventually.

"Hey, _hey!_" Suddenly, the door behind us slammed open with a loud _bang! _I quickly turned my head toward the entrance of the room, my mouth wide open. Bidoof yelped and ducked underneath one of the piles of hay.

Corphish, followed by Loudred and Blue strolled into the room. The red shelled Pokémon glared at me while pointing one of his large pincers at my face. I gulped and scooted away from the sharp pincers, not wanting that thing anywhere near my face again.

"This room's off limits to girls and intruders, Fée!" Corphish bellowed, swinging his pincer to the side and hitting the door, "You're trespassing on private property!"

"Off limits?" I asked timidly. Corphish nodded furiously as he scuttled over to where I was sitting. He rushed behind me and began to shove me toward the door. As I slid across the room, I spotted Bidoof nervously peeking out at the commotion from underneath the hay.

"That's right," Corphish said, apparently unaware of Bidoof's presence, "there's important things inside that room that only Loudred and I are allowed to see! No intruders are permitted to enter!"

"I don't understand...!" I exclaimed as Corphish threw me out of the room none – too – gently. Blue leaned over and caught me before I hit the ground. I thanked Blue and turned around, staring confusedly at Corphish, who was now barring entrance into the room by extending his pincers out to the sides of the doorway.

"I can explain," Loudred replied with a wry smile on his face, "he just doesn't want you to see his 'Happy Evolution Diary,' Fée."

"Loudred!" Corphish shouted, looking betrayed. Loudred just reared back and laughed loudly at Corphish.

"It's not even that interesting to read," Loudred remarked, winking at me, "it's just pages upon pages of him making up stories about what he's gonna do when he evolves."

Corphish looked away out of embarrassment, his face somehow turning a shade redder than usual. Out from underneath his pincer, I spotted Bidoof slowly coming out from underneath the hay. I poked Loudred to get his attention and pointed at Bidoof.

"Oy Doofy, what are you doing hiding down there?" Loudred chuckled and waved at the little bucktoothed Pokémon, "Get over here and introduce yourself to our new buddies!"

Nervously, Bidoof crawled out from underneath his hiding spot and hid behind Corphish, his eyes were trained on the new stranger in the area, Blue.

"Erm... my name's Bidoof," he said in a quiet voice, "i – It's nice t' meet ya, Mr. R – Riolu."

"My name's Blue," He said casually as he held out his paw for Bidoof to shake. Bidoof glanced at Blue with a confused look on his face.

"'Blue?'" He said as he shook Blue's paw hesitantly, "Golly, I can't say I've ever heard such an interestin' name before."

"You're not the first," Blue remarked wryly as he shot me an amused glance. I coughed and looked away, feeling a little embarrassed. After all, I was the one who gave him that name.

Bidoof let go of Blue's paw and took a step back. He looked curiously at me, and then at Blue.

"...did the two of you join together?" He asked in an oddly quiet voice.

Blue and I both nodded together. I pointed at Blue and said, "Blue and I both came here this morning together and registered as apprentices," I smiled at Blue and he responded by patting me on the head.

"Oh... I see..."

"Oh, I never did tell you, did I?" I happily held out my paw to Bidoof, "My name's Fée. It's good to meet you."

Bidoof didn't accept my paw immediately for some reason. Instead, the bucktoothed Pokémon kept shooting wary glances at Blue as if he was scared of him.

"Bidoof?" I asked concernedly, startling him a bit. He quickly ran up and tightly gripped my paw with both of his, making me wince a little.

"Ouch!"

"Eep! I'm sorry about that, Ms. Fée!" He hastily let go of his grasp on my paw and stepped back, keeping his eyes squarely focused on Blue. I shook my paw, trying to get rid of the stinging feeling. It didn't really hurt, but his strength did startle me. He was a lot stronger than I expected.

I noticed that Bidoof continued to gaze warily at Blue. I looked up at my friend, wondering what was it about it that made Bidoof so nervous. Blue didn't really have a scary expression on his face or anything, to me, he just looked as he usually did. Though, his face and body was covered in several recent scars, so I guess that it was because of his rugged appearance that was making Bidoof nervous.

"You don't have to be afraid of Blue," I said cheerfully as I gave Bidoof a soft pat on his paw, "he's a little ragged looking right now, but he's a really nice guy!"

"I'm ragged looking?" Blue commented as he began to examine his body. He showed his arms to Loudred and Corphish, looking for confirmation. I rolled my eyes and looked back to Bidoof, who was now staring at me, his face blushing bright red again for some reason.

"I... I ain't really scared of yer friend, Ms. Fée," He stuttered as he quickly withdrew his paw from mine, "I'm just... really shy, is all."

With that, Bidoof hastily bowed in front of Blue and ducked back into their room, shutting the door behind him, smacking Corphish away from the doorway. Corphish stared at the door, stunned, before giving Loudred a puzzled look.

Loudred just shrugged and said, "I guess he really is shy," he nudged Blue with his elbow and winked, "maybe your scars and stuff scared the heck out of him."

Blue scratched his nose sheepishly and asked Loudred, "Should I go apologize?"

"Haha!" Loudred chuckled and slapped Blue on the shoulder, "Nah, it's fine! I'm sure he'll warm up to you once you're all healed up and clean!"

"Oh, that's right!" I was reminded of something important. I moved behind Blue and nudged him forward with my paws, "You said something about an infirmary earlier, right Loudred?"

"Mmhm."

I sighed out of relief, "Thank goodness..."

"What's the matter, Fée?" Blue turned around and looked at me with concern in his eyes, "Did you get hurt?"

"No, you dummy!" I shouted frustratedly. I shook my head at how clueless he was, "I meant for you!"

"Me?"

I nodded, "That's right. You've been walking around for two days now with all those wounds on you. It's time you got yourself some rest!"

Blue folded his arms and grumbled, "I don't need any rest. I'm fine, see?" He held out his right arm and flexed it. I sighed exasperatedly. I've already seen him try this once already. If it didn't work the first time, it wasn't going to work again.

"Blue, I know you're really strong, but I don't want to keep seeing you hurt all over like this..."

Blue opened his mouth to reply, but I gave him a sharp poke on his back, making him jump up with a start.

"You know, she has a point," Loudred commented as he looked over Blue's arms and legs, "I've gotten quite a few bad scrapes before on expeditions, but all those cuts and bruises on your body look way worse than anything I've ever seen before."

"Makes you wish you got a shell like mine, don't ya?" Corphish added, swinging his pincers up and down gleefully, "I don't bruise or get cut easily at all, hey, hey!"

I watched as Blue held up his arms to the lamp light from the ceiling, examining his old scars. When he held up his right leg, I quickly turned away. Out of all of the wounds he had on his body, the ones present on his right leg were the worst. I couldn't help but keep my gaze averted from him as he looked closely at his leg. It was too much for me to handle.

"Yeesh, did you get your leg crushed by a boulder or something?" I heard Corphish remark with a disgusted tone, "It looks horrible!"

"It was actually a bunch of pebbles, not a boulder," Blue corrected the pincer Pokémon.

"What?" Corphish sounded confused. Evidently, he wasn't expecting an actual answer from Blue. He looked as though he wanted to ask Blue for an explanation, but as he opened his mouth, someone else's voice cut through the corridor.

"Heeeey!" Everyone turned toward the source of the call. Sunflora was running down the corridor, waving one of her leaves at us. Strangely, every time she took a step, a light tinkling noise would echo down the hall.

"Sunflora!" I shouted and waved at the flowery Pokémon, "That's weird though... I thought she was bringing her friend with her?"

"L – Loudred..." I heard Corphish speak with a strange, nervous quiver in his voice. I turned around and saw a strange sight. Both Loudred and Corphish had similar, anxious expressions on their faces, and they appeared to be sweating nervously.

"T... this ain't good at all," Loudred said in an oddly quiet voice. I tilted my head questioningly at them, wondering what was making them look so strange.

"What's going on?" I asked curiously. They didn't answer though, and instead, for some reason, their eyes kept flitting toward Blue, who just looked confused as usual.

Corphish edged closer to Loudred and whispered something inaudible into his ear. Loudred seemed to agree with the red – shelled Pokémon, as he nodded quickly. The two of them separated and suddenly surrounded Blue.

"Wha –?" Blue couldn't even voice his confusion before he was suddenly hauled up into the air by Loudred's strong arms.

"Hey, what are you doing?!" I shouted at them out of surprise.

"I'll explain later," Loudred said as he hoisted a struggling Blue onto his shoulder. He glanced over to Corphish and gave him a nod, which Corphish reciprocated. He turned back to me and said, "for now, it's best I get this guy outta here before those two get any closer!"

With that, Loudred spun around and made a mad dash down the hall and toward the main cavern with Blue still struggling in vain to get off his shoulder. I looked over to Corphish, who looked torn between following after Loudred or to stay guarding the door to his room.

"Ergh..." He noticed my gaze and made an odd coughing noise. He glanced over to the slowly approaching Sunflora, then back at me.

"Y – you know what?" He suddenly said in a panicky voice, "The mighty Crawdaunt trusts that you wont go and trespass into my room, but only this once!"

Suddenly, he turned around and scuttled off speedily after Loudred, leaving me alone and confused in the hallway.

"W – wait, where are you going?" I shouted after them, but by the time I said it, they were already gone and out of sight. I stared at them blankly, still trying to puzzle out what just happened.

"Oh my gosh, where did they go?" I heard Sunflora speak from behind me. I turned around and shrugged.

"I don't know!" I said, frowning, "They said something about having to get away before you get any closer, then they suddenly ran away."

The flowery Pokémon shook her head and folded her leaves in front of her as she frowned. I noticed that, even though Sunflora had stopped running, the strange tinkling noise continued to ring.

"Sunflora, what is that strange sound?" I asked curiously.

"Strange sound?" Sunflora held up one of her leaves and looked around her. The sound rang out again, giving Sunflora a start. She turned around and clasped her leaves together with a big smile, "Oh! You mean Chimecho?"

"Chimecho?" I repeated the word she said curiously. I looked at where Sunflora was standing at before, and found that there was another Pokémon there.

The Pokémon resembled a cute little glass wind chime, the same kind that Kangaskhan and her daughter puts out over the entrance of her house during the summer. But this chime was floating in the air on its own, and it had a small face with an equally small pair of arms jutting out of its' side. A long, floral – patterned ribbon was flowing out from underneath the Pokémon's body.

"It's good to meet you, Fée. My name is Chimecho." Her voice was calming and mellow. She bowed her head and held out her ribbon to me.

I stared silently at the ribbon for a second before I realized that she wanted me shake it. I carefully put my paw on top of her ribbon. It felt incredibly soft and velvety, but it also had a fragile feeling to it. I was afraid that if I put even a little more strength into my paw, that I would accidentally tear it.

"You don't have to be so careful around me, Fée," Chimecho said with a cute giggle as she sensed my apprehension. She wrapped her ribbon around my paw and squeezed it surprisingly tightly. She gave me a wink and said, "I'm stronger than I look."

"It's nice to meet you too, Chimecho," I said with a smile as she unwrapped her ribbon from my paw. "Are you an apprentice here too?"

The little wind chime Pokémon nodded her head, making a quiet tinkling noise as she moved.

"I'm an apprentice just like you, yes," she said, "but I do more around here than just explore."

I tilted my head questioningly, "Oh? What do you do then?"

Chimecho giggled and floated past me in a delicate manner. She turned around to look at me, her face sly and a little scary.

"Oh, you'll find out when we find your friends..."

Suddenly, I felt as though the temperature in the hallway dropped like a stone.

* * *

"Let me go!"

Blue continued to growl indignantly as Loudred lugged his body through the corridor. Once they reached the main cavern, Loudred plucked the Riolu off his shoulder and held him over his head while he frantically glanced around. Blue struggled to wriggle out of the Pokémon's grip, but his arms and gets were both pinned together by the big – mouthed Pokémon's huge hands.

"Hey, hey!" Corphish cried out as he caught up to them. He quickly rapped Loudred's feet with his pincer to grab his attention, "What do we do? Chimecho's coming!"

"We gotta hide before she catches sight of Blue," Loudred panicked, "chaos will break loose if she sees him in this state. Come on!"

"Wait, what's going o–" Blue tried to say, but he was quickly silenced when Loudred jammed his body underneath his armpit like a textbook. He gagged as a rancid stench wafted into his nostrils from underneath Loudred's arm.

Loudred stamped the grassy floor loudly as he rushed over to the other side of the cavern, knocking aside cushions and tables as he charged across the room. He halted in front of Corphish's pool of water. He quickly cast a glance behind him before withdrawing Blue from underneath his arm.

"Wait... wait hold on!" Blue panicked as he realized what Loudred was going to do. He tried as he might to struggle against the large Pokémon's clutches, but it was futile.

"Sorry, but you'll thank me for this later!"

Blue tried to shout, but he was quickly shut up by a torrent of icy cold water flooding into his mouth. Loudred had thrown him bodily into the pool of water, making a huge splash and spilling water all over the ground.

Blue splashed around wildly for a few seconds before realizing that the pool was shallow enough for him to stand. He waded over to the edge of the pool and tried to pull himself out, but Loudred placed his large hand on Blue's head and roughly shoved him back inside.

"Blugh!" Blue spat out another mouthful of water as he resurfaced again. He shot angry glares at Loudred and Corphish, "What's the big idea?"

Loudred leaned over to the side of the water and gave Blue an apologetic look. "I'm sorry Blue, but you gotta hide yourself!" He took a quick peek behind him before saying, "There's a dangerous Pokémon on the loose."

"If she sees all those wounds on you, she'll go ballistic!" Corphish shrieked, clacking his pincers frantically, "You have to hide, Blue! Not even the mighty Crawdaunt can save you from her wrath!"

Blue gave the two of them confused stares. "Her? Who are you talking about? Sunflora?"

The two of them shook their heads wildly.

"No, it's not Sunflora," Loudred said in a hushed whisper, "it's another Pokémon by the name of Chimecho. She runs the infirmary, and she gets kinda... scary if she sees anyone with injuries on them."

"So that's why you have to hide!" Corphish jumped into the water and grabbed onto to Blue's arms with his pincers, "hurry, get below the surface!"

Blue, although still unsure as to what was going on, could sense the sheer amount of panic and fear emanating from the two Pokémon. He decided to comply and follow their advice for the time being. He took a deep breath and pulled his body underwater, but decided to leave his muzzle and eyes poking out from the surface. From a distance, he resembled an oddly furry – looking water lily.

"Loudred!"

Blue's ears perked up as he heard an angry yell from the other side of the cavern. Loudred and Corphish both leapt up, startled. They turned around robotically, sweating nervously as they addressed the voice. Blue peeked through Loudred's legs to see what was going on.

Sunflora was storming toward them in a huff, followed by Fée and another Pokémon he didn't recognize. The flowery Pokémon stopped right in front of Loudred, staring suspiciously into his eyes. Fée and Chimecho halted in front of them as well, with Fée looking around with a puzzled expression on her face.

"Where's Blue?" She asked, looking around for the missing Riolu.

"Blue?" Loudred looked away from Sunflora and spoke in an unconvincingly confused voice, "Who's Blue? Do you mean the sky is blue today? Because it's really, really blue today, right Corphish?"

Corphish jumped up, startled. Loudred shot a quick wink at the little lobster Pokémon, who responded with the smallest of nods and said, "Yeah! The sky's pretty blue today! Azure! Aquamarine! Um... cobalt?"

Fée stared at Loudred as if he had suddenly gone insane. Sunflora sighed in exasperation and covered her face with her leaf. Chimecho, on the other hand, stayed silent and lightly floated over to where Loudred was standing. She tried to look over his shoulder, but Loudred blocked her view by casually putting his hands behind his head.

"C – Chimecho! I didn't see you there!" Loudred said in a loud, casual voice, "G – good weather we have today, yeah? I really like it when the sky's all blue and shiny! Ha, ha, ha!"

Loudred clutched the back of his head with his right hand and bellowed out a forced – sounding laugh. With his left hand, he urged Corphish to laugh too by patting him on the back. Corphish winced as he felt Loudred's forceful hit, but he laughed anyway.

"Ha, ha, ha...!"

A plume of bubbles escaped Blue's mouth as he sighed. The two of them were absolutely awful at keeping secrets. As he submerged himself a little more, he felt an odd tingling sensation at the back of his neck. He looked around with his eyes as inconspicuously as possible, but he couldn't find anything around him.

"Loudred, Corphish," Sunflora narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the laughing pair, "where did you two hide Blue?"

"Hide? What do you mean hide?"

An acute sense of danger was flooding through Blue's body. The strange sensation was getting stronger and stronger, and he still couldn't find the source of it. He tried to raise his right arm, but he found that his arm couldn't move for some reason. In fact, his entire body was slowly becoming rigid and immobile, like a log.

"That's enough." An icy voice suddenly rang out from behind Loudred and Corphish. Immediately, Loudred and Corphish broke out in cold sweat as they slowly turned their gaze toward the wind chime. Chimecho was serenely hovering over the water pool, just a few inches behind where Blue's head was floating. Her cute little face wasn't displaying any emotion at all. Instead, her eyes were closed and it appeared as though she as focusing on something.

Blue noticed the odd looks on Loudred and Corphish's faces. He was curious as to what was making the two of them so scared, but at the same time, an unfamiliar feeling was rushing through his body, telling him not to move an inch. He gulped and tried to peek behind him.

Suddenly, the pool of water was illuminated by an odd blue glow. Looking down, he saw that his arms, body and even his legs were covered by a faint blue outline. He tried to move his limbs, but found that invisible strings had attached themselves to him. He was forcibly reminded of what Drowzee did to him in their battle yesterday.

"Gaaah!" Panic set in as he tried to struggle against the psychic attack, but for every inch he moved, more strings appeared to hold him down. Eventually, he was encased in an odd, invisible cocoon that completely prevented him from moving at all.

"Uh oh," Loudred slapped his face with his palm as he watched Chimecho slowly levitate Blue out of the water and over their heads. This is what he was trying to prevent, but the little wind chime Pokémon must've sneaked past them while they were distracted.

"Blue?!" Fée was aghast at seeing her friend soaked to the bone and floating in the air, "What are you doing in the water?"

"Mmfph!" Blue tried to reply, but Chimecho had bound his muzzle as well, preventing him from being able to talk. All he could do was give the Eevee an apologetic look as he was carried over the grassy floor like a strange, furry mannequin.

"Tsk, tsk," Chimecho made a disapproving sound as she floated around the frozen Riolu. She scanned all over Blue's body with her eyes, taking note of every single cut, bruise and scrape she found.

Blue could do nothing at all but hold still in embarrassment as he was held prisoner by the small wind chime. He suddenly realized why Loudred and Corphish were so afraid of this Pokémon. He tried to beg Fée to help with his eyes, but she was too stunned to move a single paw. As for Loudred and Corphish, the two of them seemed to be content with shooting him sympathetic and pitying looks rather than helping him.

"So..." Chimecho turned toward the Eevee and said, "this is your friend, Blue?"

"Y – yes..." Fée was a little taken aback by Chimecho's sudden change in demeanor, "that's him."

"I see. You weren't exaggerating when you said he was pretty badly injured, Sunflora."

Chimecho's eyes glowed a vibrant blue as she made Blue's body rotate on its own. It was a surreal sight for everyone to see. Poor Blue was forced to spin round and round like a museum exhibit.

"Especially here," Chimecho suddenly halted Blue's rotation and pointed her ribbon at his right leg. She hovered closer to his leg and prodded it with her ribbon, making Blue wince in pain.

"The sheer amount of abuse you have heaped onto this poor leg is unbelievable, Blue." Chimecho stated in a plain voice, "I'm genuinely surprised that you're even still capable of standing on it, let alone being able to walk."

"What?" Fée cried out, staring incredulously at Chimecho."What do you mean by that?"

"I meant what I meant," Chimecho said, turning to the startled Eevee, "just from surface analysis alone, I can see that this leg has been wounded by sharp blades, soaked in unsanitary seawater, exposed to poisonous gasses, suffered repeated physical trauma, and furthermore..."

"F – furthermore...?"

Chimecho gently wrapped her ribbon around Blue's injured leg. She closed her eyes and began to focus. Slowly, the blue glow around her ribbon began to intensify.

"Within his leg lies a large amount of paralyzing toxin," Chimecho announced to a horrified – looking Fée, "this toxin is usually secreted by a Pokémon by the name of Kabuto in order to weaken their prey so they can easily catch them."

Chimecho released her grip on Blue's leg, and in turn, released her psychic control over his entire body. The Riolu collapsed face – first onto the grass, his body was extremely sore from being forced into that immobile state for so long. He rolled over and opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted by a worried Fée suddenly tackling him and cradling his arm.

"Geh!"

"Normally, having the toxin present within your leg for so long would render that limb useless within hours," Chimecho stated bluntly, ignoring his groaning form, "most Pokémon end up having to use crutches for the rest of their lives if they can't detoxify the afflicted limb fast enough."

"B – but..." Fée clung tightly onto Blue's arm, "there has to be a way to cure him, there has to!" She buried her face into Blue's fur and shouted, "We just became explorers! I don't want Blue to have to run around with crutches!"

"Wait a sec!" Loudred interrupted loudly, shoving himself into the conversation, "If that toxin really is so deadly, then why does Blue look like he's totally fine?" He jabbed a thick finger at the Riolu, "He's been walking and running around just fine yesterday! Maybe he's immune to that toxin!"

"No, that's impossible," Chimecho stated bluntly, making Loudred wilt like a dried up flower, "unless Blue suddenly became a steel – bodied Pokémon, it's impossible for him to become fully immune to another Pokémon's toxins."

"T – then... is there any kind of berry that can cure him right now?" Fée said hesitantly.

Chimecho folded her ribbon underneath her, making a zig – zag pattern, "I'm sorry to say that there exists no berry in this world that can cure the toxin when it has set in." Chimecho shot Blue a cold look, "If he had taken a Lum Berry immediately after being bitten, then he might've had a chance. However, as of right now, that possibility has been lost."

"Ooh... then what can we do?" Sunflora said worriedly, "You're the doctor, Chimecho! You should have a clue as to what we can do to cure Blue's leg!"

Chimecho closed her eyes and curled her ribbon upward, allowing the tip of the silky cloth to touch the bottom of her face. Everybody stared expectantly at Chimecho, waiting anxiously for the little wind chime to say something, anything. A minute of tension passed by, then another, then another. Every Pokémon continued to wait with bated breath.

Then, after about five or so minutes had passed, Chimecho's eyes opened. She pointed her ribbon at Blue and said in a hesitant voice, "I... do have an idea."

Fée sprung up from the ground, "Really?!" Her eyes were sparkling with hope as she ran up to the wind chime, "What's your idea, Chimecho?"

Chimecho didn't answer, but instead, she floated up into the air silently. She glanced around the room with a nervous glint in her eye.

"Hey, hey, Chimecho," Corphish said as he impatiently beat the ground with his pincers, "you can't just say something like that and then fall silent!"

"That's right," Loudred added, folding his arms, "spill it, Chimecho! What's your idea?"

Chimecho shot an angry stare at the two of them, making them falter and quickly back off, mumbling apologies under their breaths. Then, she sighed and lowered herself and floated toward Blue and Fée.

"My idea... is a little hard to believe," She said to the two, looking nervous, "but, it's the only thing that could come to my mind, no matter how hard I tried to think of another one."

"What is it then?" Blue said.

Chimecho took another nervous glance around the room again before sighing.

"My idea... was for you to take a medicine called the 'Legendary Panacea Elixir,'" Chimecho stated with a certain disgust in her voice. Fée, Blue and the rest of the guild tilted their heads simultaneously in confusion.

"'Legendary Panacea Elixir?'" Corphish said, his voice laced with disbelief, "What the hey is that?"

"It sounds like something out of a storybook, don't you think?" Fée commented, holding a paw up to her chin and mulling over the name, "I think I've actually read about it somewhere before though."

"That's why I didn't want to say it!" Chimecho shouted indignantly, making everyone flinch at her sudden outburst, "It sounds so ridiculous and unreal that even I don't want to believe that it exists!"

Her ribbon shot up angrily and she said, "I'd like you to know that I only prescribe medicines and berries that have scientific basis behind them! Not some fairy tale cure – all like this so – called Panacea!"

"Wait, hold up," Blue interjected, sticking his paw out in front of Chimecho's face, "you said that this 'Panacea' is a cure – all?"

"That's right," Chimecho said with a huff, "it's a legend amongst Pokémon who practice medicine like I do. It's supposedly a special drug that, when ingested, completely cures every ailment that the consumer is currently suffering from."

"Oh!" Fée suddenly piped up. She turned toward Blue and said with a certain glee in her voice, "I remember now!" She clapped her paws together eagerly, "It was mentioned in passing in a chapter of 'Dusknoir's Travels,' where the explorer Dusknoir cures his severely – injured partner with a single Panacea that he discovered on an expedition!"

"Seriously?" Sunflora exclaimed, "If that's the case, then it must exist, right? If it's in Dusknoir's own book!"

"That doesn't prove anything!" Chimecho fumed, "Just because it was in a story book – albeit written by Dusknoir himself – doesn't mean this stupid elixir exists!"

Fée's ears flattened onto her head as she heard Chimecho's remark about her favorite book. Blue noticed and gently patted her head comfortingly. He looked up at Chimecho and frowned.

"Then how do you say we get around to curing my leg?" Blue posed a question to Chimecho, who was still steaming from indignation. Blue took his paw off Fée's head and folded them angrily.

"You were the one who brought up the idea of a miracle cure in the Panacea, Chimecho," he waited for Chimecho to finish trembling in anger at the mention of that word before continuing, "if you're so adamant that such a thing doesn't exist, then why don't you come up with something else?"

"T – that's..." Chimecho suddenly fell silent. Her ribbon fell down and hung underneath her in a limp, defeated fashion. She sighed dejectedly and said, "I... I don't have any ideas on how to cure your leg, Blue. That's why I even bothered to entertain the notion of having you take a miracle medicine that doesn't exist."

Chimecho shook her head and gently lowered herself onto the ground, where she laid her little glassy body on the grass. Blue, Fée and everyone else all fell silent as well, crestfallen at the little doctor's announcement. Fée gently placed a paw on Blue's injured leg and gazed at him sadly.

"Well now, what's with all the sad faces?"

Suddenly, a new voice joined their midst. Everyone turned toward the source of the voice and saw Chatot sauntering toward them, with Guildmaster Wigglytuff following close behind. The two of them looked like they were in good spirits. Guildmaster Wigglytuff waltzed over to Fée and Blue and grinned widely right in front of them

"Friends! You shouldn't all be sitting on the ground sad and depressed when it's such a good day out today!" He gleefully grabbed onto Blue's arm and the back of Fée's ruff and hauled them onto their feet. Then, with the delicacy of a Wailord in a pottery shop, he began to roughly dust them off with his paws.

"Ouch!" Blue winced and cried out when the Guildmaster accidentally brushed against his leg. Blue swatted at the Guildmaster with his paw, trying to get him to stop.

"Oh my!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff took a step back and dodged Blue's attack. The Guildmaster gazed at Blue's wounded leg with a mischievous look in his eye. He suddenly bent down and prodded Blue's leg playfully, eliciting more yelps of pain out of the poor Riolu.

"Cut it out!" Blue shouted angrily as he yanked his leg away from the annoying Guildmaster and scooted away. He warily watched the Guildmaster as he tried to keep his leg away from the pink Pokémon's prying paws.

"Ahem," Chatot coughed loudly, attracting everybody's attention. He gestured toward Blue and said in an oddly theatrical voice, "Well Blue! It looks like your leg is pretty badly injured, is it not?"

Blue glanced at him with a puzzled look in his eye. Didn't Chatot already know about his injury from earlier? Blue wondered why the bird was acting so strangely.

Chatot apparently didn't notice Blue's curious stare, as he turned around and faced Chimecho. He stretched out his wing and pointed at the little wind chime Pokémon and said in the same theatrical voice, "But it shouldn't be an issue, right Chimecho? You are the most most skilled doctor we have here in Wigglytuff's Guild, therefore you can cure his grievous injury in no time, or am I mistaken, Chimecho?""

"Err..." Chimecho looked startled as she was suddenly put on the spot. She glanced around everyone nervously as she tried to think of a way to answer the pompous bird, but she simply couldn't come up with anything.

"What?" Chatot said in a loud, shocked voice, "You mean to tell me that our new apprentice has such a severe wound that not even our greatest doctor can cure?! What an appalling situation we have here!"

Chatot leaned backward on one leg while covering his face melodramatically with his wing. Guildmaster Wigglytuff attempted to do the same pose, but his larger size and weight made him suddenly topple over backward instead.

Confused, Sunflora glanced over to Loudred for an explanation. Loudred, however, just shrugged and gave her an equally confused look while scratching his head.

"Um... Chatot?" Sunflora asked in a worried voice, "Are you feeling alright?"

"Blue!" The bird suddenly sprung up from his odd pose and rushed over to the Riolu. He grasped Blue's paws with both of his wings and proclaimed, "As second – in – command of this guild, I must apologize profusely to you for not being able to aid you in your most dire time of need!"

"Uhm... that's alright...?" Blue was completely dumbfounded by the bird's incredibly strange actions. He tried to pull his paw out from within Chatot's wings, but the bird had grabbed onto his paw tightly and wouldn't let go.

Chatot looked up at the ceiling and continued speaking in his loud, melodramatic voice, "Alas! If only there was a medicine that could cure all that ails you! A legendary panacea elixir if you will!"

Blue mulled over the bird's words for a second. Then, something odd stuck out to him.

"Hey wait a minute, did you just say Pana –"

"Oh woe is us, Guildmaster!" Chatot said in an overly emotional voice, interrupting Blue's sentence, "If only we had a way to procure this mysterious legendary Panacea for our wonderful new apprentice!"

"Oh woe for our new friend!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff said with a big smile on his face. Compared to what he just said, his facial expression was incredibly jarring and out of place. Everyone gaped at Guildmaster Wigglytuff in stunned silence, even Chatot.

"Oh, whoops!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff turned around and quickly rearranged his expression. When he turned back around, he had a sad frown on his face instead of his bright smile.

"Ahem!" Chatot quickly coughed to regain everybody's attention, "I – if only there were a pair of experienced explorers around here that might possibly know the location of such an auspicious medicine! Alas! If only!"

Chatot withdrew his wing and closed his eyes. Then, silence. Nobody spoke at all for a while after Chatot finished. The bird, sensing that something was wrong, opened one of his eyes and glanced over to Wigglytuff.

"Guildmaster?"

The Guildmaster had bent over the side of the water pool and was playfully splashing water around with his paw, completely ignoring what Chatot said. Their audience looked at Wigglytuff, then back at Chatot. Panicking, the bird rushed over the Guildmaster's side and hurriedly prodded the pink Pokémon with his beak.

"G – Guildmaster...!" he hissed in Wigglytuff's ear.

"What is it Chatot?" Guildmaster Wigglytuff said innocently, "Did you want to take a bath?"

Corphish and Loudred both snickered at the Guildmaster's words while the multicolored bird blushed furiously. He rapped Wigglytuff on the foot with his beak angrily, making the chubby Pokémon squeak in pain.

"Guildmaster!" Chatot hissed indignantly, "We were supposed to act this out, or have you forgotten?"

"Act...?" The Guildmaster held his paw up to his chin and pondered the bird's words for a moment. Then, as if a balloon had just popped inside his head, he suddenly clapped his paws together and smiled widely.

"Oh right! We were supposed to trick Blue and Fée into asking us about the Panacea by pretending that we didn't know what it was!" He turned to an aghast – looking Chatot with a proud expression on his face, "But the truth is, we know everything there is to know about the legendary medicine! Isn't that right, Chatot?"

Chatot smacked his face with his wing.


	17. The great explorer, Dusknoir

**• ****  
Chapter 16:**

**"The great explorer, Dusknoir"**

"The Legendary Panacea Elixir... exists?"

Chimecho spoke with a hushed whisper, her expression was that of shock and disbelief. Everybody stared expectantly at Guildmaster Wigglytuff, waiting with bated breath for the smiling Pokémon to answer one way or another. Seconds passed into minutes as Guildmaster Wigglytuff fell into an odd silence. Sweat dripped down Loudred's back while Corphish and Sunflora both took a deep gulp.

Blue frowned and folded his arms impatiently while Fée wore a worried look on her face. Chimecho continued to look indignant.

"Does it exist...?" Guildmaster Wigglytuff finally spoke. He held a pink paw up to the bottom of his mouth and tilted his head, making his long ears flop to the side. He closed his eyes and made a deep _hmmm_ing noise, indicating that he was in deep thought.

Eventually, after a few more seconds of waiting, Guildmaster Wigglytuff opened his eyes and smiled even wider as he cheerfully announced, "Of course it does!"

He held up a paw to a stunned – looking Chimecho, "We live in a wonderful world of adventure and mystery! Something as fantastical as an all – curing medicine definitely exists!"

"B – b – but...!" Chimecho stuttered, sounding outraged and skeptical, "There's no basis for such a thing to exist! If it did exist, then why do we bother with medicines?"

Everybody turned toward to Guildmaster Wigglytuff now, waiting for his response. The Guildmaster folded his arms across his chest and closed his big eyes. To everybody, he looked like he was deep in thought.

For about three seconds.

"I dunno!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff shouted as he opened his eyes wide and beamed, making Chimecho gape at him in disbelief. The Guildmaster bounced up and down gleefully as he clapped his paws together, "But, what I do know is that the Panacea does exist somewhere in the frontier!"

The wind chime Pokémon shook her head, "But where's the proof, Guildmaster?" She swooped over to Guildmaster Wigglytuff's side and said, "I'm sorry if I'm being discourteous to you, but I can't for the life of me believe that an all – curing medicine exists!"

"But it does...!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff pouted, puffing his cheeks out like a child, "I know it exists!"

"But where's the proof?" Chimecho cried out, "I want to see such a miraculous thing with my own eyes!"

"Ahem..." Everyone turned their heads toward Chatot, who recovered from his earlier embarrassment. The multi – colored bird walked up to Chimecho and said, "Chimecho, if you require proof that it exists, why not go forth and find it yourself?"

"Eh?" Chimecho's mouth hung open as she gaped at Chatot. The bird covered his face with his wing and chuckled.

"You are an apprentice explorer, are you not? The only way for you to truly know if something legendary or mystical truly exists... or not, is by finding it and verifying it with your own eyes!"

"Mmhm!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff bounced up and nodded fervently. He raise up his right paw and pointed to the ceiling, "We're explorers! Finding legendary or mystical things is our specialty!"

"Yeah!" Loudred agreed with a bellow, making everybody to flinch from the noise, "Guildmaster and Chatot's right! There's no reason for us to sit here and debate whether or not this stupid medicine exists like a bunch of old fogeys!"

The boisterous Pokémon pounded his palm with his fist, making a low booming noise, "We're explorers! We should be going out and finding this p... pan... panga... medicine for Blue!"

"Panacea," Sunflora corrected him with a nod. She turned toward Guildmaster Wigglytuff and appealed, "I agree with Loudred, Guildmaster. If you say that the Panacea exists, then please allow us to go on an expedition to find it!"

"Hey, hey!" Corphish gleefully jumped into the air, scuttling his little legs while snapping his pincers at the air, "If you're all going out to find the Panacea, then count me in too!"

Corphish ran in between everybody and held up his pincer. Loudred chuckled and placed his hand on top of the lobster's pincer. Sunflora joined them afterward with a gleeful little giggle. The three of them turned their heads toward Chimecho and grinned.

"Come on Chimecho!" Sunflora urged the hesitant wind chime, "It'll be fun!"

"And," Loudred added, "you can prove to us whether or not this pa... medicine exists!"

"Ergh..." Chimecho grumbled as she glanced over to Guildmaster Wigglytuff and Chatot. The two of them also smiled back at the wind chime and nodded. Feeling as though she was fighting a losing battle, Chimecho sighed and reluctantly joined the group. She placed her ribbon on top of Sunflora's leaf.

"Alright, fine. You guys win," She said, making the group break out in victorious cheers, "but!" She raised and pointed her ribbon over to Loudred and Corphish, "If it turns out that this Panacea doesn't exist, then I'm going to punish you two severely."

Loudred and Corphish blanched at the little wind chime's innocent smile. They glanced nervously at each other, both of them breaking out in cold sweat. Hesitantly, they nodded at Chimecho, agreeing to her evil plan.

"Hee hee..." She giggled softly, making the Loudred and Corphish duo shudder involuntarily. Sunflora, ignoring the plight of her two comrades, turned toward Blue and Fée.

"Don't just sit there, you two!" She said, beckoning them over, "You're both explorers too!"

Fée looked surprised. She looked over to Blue, who was watching the scene unfold with an amused expression on his face. He turned toward the Eevee and grinned.

"How about it, Fée?" He said as he patted her on the head, "You want to go out on an expedition to find a cure for my leg?"

Fée smiled and gently nudged him on the chest, "You dummy. How can I say no to something like that?"

She stood up and walked up to the group and placed her paw on Chimecho's ribbon. Then, as she turned around to look at Blue, the Riolu walked past her and fluffed the fur on top of her head with his paw as he placed his other paw on top of hers. They smiled at each other before turning to face the rest of the group.

"Alright then!" Loudred announced in his usual bombastic voice, "Our goal for the day is to find the medicine for Blue's leg! Is everyone okay with that?"

"Yeah!"

Hands, leaves, ribbons, pincers and paws flew up into the air as everyone shouted energetically.

"Good, good!" Chatot clapped his wings together as he watched the group cheer together, "It's nice to see you all working together so enthusiastically!"

"Enthusiastic friends! Yay!" Guildmaster Wigglytuff gleefully clapped his paws together, mimicking the bird.

"However!" Chatot suddenly flew up and landed in between the group. He held up a wing and began to separate everybody, "As much as I hate to ruin what would most likely be a glorious cooperative effort from all of you," Chatot stated in a pompous voice, "I am sad to inform you that every single one of you, apart from Blue and Fée, are barred from helping them find the Panacea Elixir."

"Eh!?" A loud, shocked cry erupted from the group.

"But, why?" Loudred shouted in indignation, "We were all ready to go and help Blue find the cure for his leg! You can't just ban us from helping them out!"

"Hey, hey, that's right!" Corphish slammed his pincers together, "Are you saying that we should just let Blue's leg rot and fall off?!"

"Corphish! That was tactless!" Sunflora chided the lobster Pokémon.

"Oh, err..." Corphish glanced over to Blue, "S – sorry."

Blue shrugged and waved away Corphish's rude comment with his paw.

"Now, now," Chatot said, trying to pacify the growing resentment in the group, "allow me to explain."

He gestured toward Fée and Blue, "As I am sure you all already know, these two are brand new apprentices here in the guild. Therefore, I am going to consider this upcoming search for the Panacea Elixir as their introductory training mission."

Everybody suddenly blanched at what Chatot said. Loudred and Sunflora both shook their heads and covered their faces with their hands; Corphish began to scuttle around side by side while Chimecho began to mumble darkly about needing more medicinal berries.

"Introductory training mission?" Fée echoed the strange term, unaware of what the rest of the group was doing, "What's that?"

Chatot chuckled at the confused Eevee, "Why, it's a specialty here at Wigglytuff's Guild, Fée." He gestured toward the other explorers around her and said, "Consider it a special service."

"You see, unlike other guilds, we do not provide you with an experienced guide during your first expedition. Instead, we expect you to go through your first expedition on your own and learn from experience!"

"E...eh?!" Fée looked startled, "B – but, who will teach us the basics of exploring then?"

"Basics?" Chatot echoed, "Why, there is no need for you to be worried about such a thing," The bird pointed at the other apprentices with his wing and stated, "everyone else here all learned their skills on their own, without anybody holding their hands through the process."

The Eevee glanced over to the group for confirmation. Loudred, Sunflora, Chimecho and Corphish all nodded, although hesitantly, at Chatot's words.

"Don't fret, Fée!" Chatot said in a jovial voice as he patted her head with his wing, "Unlike the rest of them, you joined the guild with a friend! Therefore, I'll allow you the privilege to begin your training with Blue by your side."

He fluttered over to Blue's side and extended his wings out to the Riolu, who looked confused about what was going on.

"Hold on Chatot," Chimecho cut in, flying over to Blue's other side, "I can't accept your decision there!"

"What do you mean, Chimecho?"

Chimecho jabbed her ribbon at Blue's leg, "Blue is injured, he should be resting instead of exhausting his leg even more!"

"Hm," Chatot walked over to Blue and surveyed his leg. After giving it a thorough examination, Chatot moved back and stated, "I don't see any problem with this. It shouldn't be a problem."

"What?!" Chimecho looked aghast at the bird. Chatot ignored her appalled glare and rounded over to Blue.

"I'm sure Blue would agree with me when I say that such a wound means nothing to such a tough Pokémon like him, am I wrong?"

Blue glanced up at the bird, who was wearing a knowing expression on his face. He mulled over his options for a moment, nod and go with Fée on an adventure, or shake his head and stay in the guild, monitored by Chimecho. He could feel the wind chime's glare searing into the back of his head as he considered his choices.

"I'll go, I have no objections." He stood up and patted his chest.

Chimecho groaned and slapped her face with her ribbon while Chatot clapped his wings together with great enthusiasm.

"Good, good! Very good!" Chatot flew away from Blue and landed by Wigglytuff's side. He pointed at the door to their office, "Well then, if the two of you would kindly follow us to our office. We'll tell you the details of your first expedition there."

"So exciting!" Wigglytuff squealed as he skipped toward his own office. Chatot quickly followed behind him, whistling a jaunty tune as he flew through the cavern.

"That stinks!" Loudred grumbled as he flopped onto the grass. He leaned the side of his head against his fist as he sent an indignant glare at the door to the Guildmaster's Office, "I was getting all excited to find that stupid elixir too!"

"It can't be helped," Sunflora mumbled as she shrugged in defeat, "we went through the same thing too when we first joined."

Fée gave Sunflora a nervous glance, "What... what does this training mission thing entail, Sunflora?"

"Ooh..." Sunflora held her leaves up to the side of her head, shivering a little, "it's different for everyone, but it's basically your very first expedition, Fée."

"But... it's easier, right?" Fée asked, her face displaying a nervous smile, "I mean... I read about some guilds sending new apprentices to close by, safe places while accompanied by an experienced explorer for their first expedition."

To her great dismay, everyone shook their heads vehemently.

"I wish it was easier!" Sunflora cried out, covering her face with her leaves, "I – I remember when Chatot sent me on my first expedition... it was to the Northern Desert!" She shuddered fearfully as she remembered the harrowing experience, "It was so hot... and so dry... that I felt like I was going to wilt!"

"For me, the Guildmaster told me to go to Amp Plains," Corphish grumbled as he laid his pincers on the grass, "I couldn't feel my pincers for weeks after I came back from that electrifying nightmare..."

"I had the misfortune of joining during the rainy season..." Chimecho covered her face with her ribbon, "I never want to visit Drenched Bluff again after being swept all over the place by the water..."

Only Loudred wasn't affected by the doom – and – gloom. Instead, he had laid down on the grass and was waving his hand around in a dismissive fashion, "You're all wusses! I didn't have a single problem with my first expedition at all! Ha, ha!"

Corphish scowled at the laughing Loudred, "That's because you got lucky and ran into another group of explorers during your first expedition!" He clacked his pincers at him, "If they hadn't shared their rations with you, you would've been running home begging for food!"

"I still passed my test though! Ha!" Loudred grinned, unfazed by Corphish's irritated accusation.

"E – either way," Sunflora hurried over to Fée and Blue and shoved them toward the Guildmaster's office, "you shouldn't keep them waiting, ooh... this is so nerve – wracking!"

"H – hey, Sunflora, wait...!" Fée tried to protest, but Sunflora just gave her a quick push on the rump and shoved her through the door.

* * *

Once again, I found myself standing inside of the Guildmaster's messy office. After dropping us inside the door, Sunflora gave Blue an I an encouraging wink and quickly ducked out of the room.

Wigglytuff and Chatot were huddled over the desk. They looked like they were discussing something important with each other. The two of them looked like they haven't noticed us yet. I thought about saying something to announce our presence, but I felt a little hesitant doing so.

My first expedition... I didn't think it would come so soon. Well, technically speaking, I suppose it would be my second. I glanced over to Blue, who was distracted by the piles of junk strewn all around us. The adventure we had in the Beach Cave was my first ever foray into the world of exploration, and... well, it was fun.

But at the same time, it was also incredibly dangerous. Ever since we exited the Beach Cave, Blue was suffering from that one terrible bite on his leg. I looked down at my paws. If I had just been a little braver, he wouldn't have been hurt for my sake. I could've fought off that swarm of Kabuto alongside him instead of needing him to save me.

I don't want to be the same, cowardly Fée. I'm going to get braver, and I'm going to become a real explorer like I've always dreamed of!

"Guildmaster! Chatot!" I announced in a loud and confident voice, "Blue and I have arrived!"

"Ho ho!" Chatot looked a little startled, but he and Wigglytuff both had big smiles on their faces, "Good, good! I'm glad to see the both of you haven't ran away like the rest!"

"Ran away?" I asked, puzzled by what he said.

Chatot just shook his head and waved away my question with his wing.

"Nothing for you to worry your furry little head about, Fée. Now, would the both of you please come over here? There's something we need to discuss with you two about your expedition."

"Is this about the Panacea?" Blue asked as we made our way over to the desk, making sure to avoid all the junk that was scattered all over the place.

"Of course it is," Chatot nodded, "now, come closer. What I am about to tell you next is a very, very important secret."

"A secret?" The idea of being told a secret piqued my interest. I leaned my head over the desk, pointing my ear at Chatot's beak.

"Ho ho, I see you're eager!" Chatot chuckled, "However, there is something important I must tell you before I divulge this secret."

"What is it?"

Chatot cleared his throat and lowered his voice as he leaned in closer, "I must ask the two of you to keep the details of your expedition to yourself. You cannot tell anyone, no one at all, about what you see or what you've heard about on your expedition."

"Not even to Loudred or Sunflora?"

Chatot nodded, "That's right. Not even to Loudred or Sunflora."

"This must be something really important then," Blue remarked as he folded his arms across his chest, "is the Panacea really that secretive?"

Guildmaster Wigglytuff grinned and bent down below the desk. When he came back up, he was holding onto another one of his favorite shiny apples. He placed it on top of the desk and spun it like a top.

"Yep! It's super secrety!" He said as he watched the apple spin around, "We've already found the Panacea before, you see!"

"Mmhm, that is correct," Chatot concurred as he stopped the spinning apple with his talons, "however, we were sworn to never reveal the location of the Panacea Elixir unless we had a good reason."

"And curing a friend's injury is a good reason!" Wigglytuff cheered as he plucked the apple out of Chatot's grip.

"Yes, I believe so too," the bird turned toward Blue and Fée, a serious expression on his face, "which is why we decided to entrust you two with this incredibly important information."

"I – I'm honored, Chatot!" I stuttered nervously, "I promise that I wont tell anyone about this secret! Not even to Blue!"

"I'm right here, Fée," Blue chuckled as he shook his head.

I blushed, "O – oh, of course! That's not what I meant, I mean..."

Feeling stupid, I covered my face with my paws and ducked underneath the desk. I heard Blue and the Guildmaster laugh loudly while Chatot coughed.

"Well... you seem earnest and trustworthy enough," I heard Chatot say as I rose back up from beneath the desk.

Chatot reached inside his wing with his beak and withdrew a small, oblong envelope. He placed it on the desk and slid it to us with his feet. I stared at it curiously as Blue picked it up.

"What's this?" Blue said as he flipped the envelope around. There was some small writing on the surface of the white envelope. I couldn't quite make out what it said from where I was standing, but it looked like it was an address.

"There's a certain Pokémon in Treasure Town that knows the exact location of the Panacea," Chatot explained, "I would like you to deliver that letter to this Pokémon."

"Deliver...?" Blue's eyes narrowed as he looked away from the letter and at Chatot, "Don't you know where it is already? Why can't you just tell us?"

Blue had a point. Judging from what the two of them had said, they should already know the location of the Panacea. Having us seek out another Pokémon to find out where it's located seemed like a waste of time to me.

"Ho ho, you think we were going to make it that easy for you two?" Chatot had a devious look in his eye as he chuckled, "Consider this a part of your expedition. It pays to prepare before you make a journey, of course."

"Yep! Besides, it would be no fun if we just went and told you that the Panacea was inside the Forl – beh!"

Both Blue's ears and mine perked up. Did Guildmaster Wigglytuff almost tell us where the Panacea was? Unfortunately, Chatot had slapped his wing over the excitable Guildmaster's mouth before he managed to say the entire thing. Chatot glared angrily at Wigglytuff before trying to shoo us out of the room with his other wing.

"I – Ignore what the Guildmaster just said! The Pokémon you two are looking for is called Duskull. He should be in town somewhere right now, so go and find him and deliver that letter! You may leave!"

Sensing danger, I tugged at Blue's arm with my mouth and gestured toward the door. I bowed at Chatot and the Guildmaster before quickly turning around and sprinting toward the exit. From behind me, I could hear angry yelling and happy giggling.

* * *

As soon as Blue and I exited the office, we were immediately surrounded by our guildmates. Sunflora, Loudred, Corphish and Chimecho all began to bombard Blue and I with questions about what transpired inside the office.

"Hey! Hey! Where did the boss send you guys off to?"

"Is it an awful place? Oooh, I'd hate it if you guys had to go to to the desert too!"

"If that's the case, I must pack you some Rawst Berries! Unless you're heading to somewhere cold, in which case I'm sorry to say that we are out of Aspears."

"Calm down you guys, let the kids speak!"

Feeling a little overwhelmed, I took a step back and quickly bowed to them as an apology.

"Sorry!" I said, my face against the grass, "But I'm not allowed to tell you guys about where we're going! They made us promise to keep it a secret from everyone!"

I watched as they all seemed to wilt in disappointment. I felt a little bad, they probably really wanted to help us with our expedition. Loudred recovered first and put a big grin on his face as he placed his hands on his hips.

"Well that's a shame, but that's just how it is!" He roared with laughter, forcing everyone to wince again as he gave Blue's back a jovial slap, "You two will tell us everything that happened when you come back, right?"

"O – of course we will!" I shouted, my ears still ringing from his loud outburst, "At least, as much as we're allowed to by Chatot and the Guildmaster."

"Oooh, I can't wait!" Sunflora squealed and raised up both of her leaves. Sensing danger, I immediately ducked behind Blue and peered out from behind him at Sunflora warily.

"Hey, hey! She's used to your tricks now, Sunflora!" Corphish snickered as Sunflora's arms and head drooped down in disappointment. Chimecho hovered over to Blue and shoved something small and white into his paws. I peeked under his arm and saw that it was a small packet of berries.

"You make sure you keep your body safe and healthy, alright?" Chimecho said in a stern voice. She patted the packet of berries in his paw with her ribbon with a scowl on her face, "If I had my way, I would have you psychically tied down to a bed with your leg bound in a cast until we find a way to cure it without this... Panacea..." She paused and sighed in an irritated way, "but I can't go against what Chatot and the Guildmaster wants. So in place of a good night's sleep, I want you to take one of these Pecha Berries every time your leg starts to feel uncomfortable, alright?"

Blue held up the packet of pink Pecha Berries and grinned, "Thanks Chimecho, I'll take good care of these."

"And Fée!" I jumped with a start as Chimecho addressed me. She jabbed her ribbon at me and said, "You make sure he doesn't get into any trouble, alright? No roughhousing or fighting, no long distance running or long jumping. Otherwise I might have to bind you up alongside Blue as a punishment!"

"I – I'll try!" I gave her a frantic nod. The thought of being punished by Chimecho was triggering a sense of terror inside of me, which seemed to be shared by everyone else, since I wasn't the only one shuddering in fear.

"Good. I'll see you two back by tonight then." On that lofty note, Chimecho turned around and floated away and into the hallways. Once the wind chime vanished, everyone released a great sigh of relief.

"Is she always that... extreme?" I asked quietly, afraid that she might hear me, "She didn't seem that way when I first met her..."

Sunflora shrugged and said, "She's a really nice girl usually, but if you flick her doctor switch, she gets really scary!"

"Nice girl...? I don't think I've ever seen that side of her before," Corphish mumbled sarcastically, only to get a leaf slapped against his back as a response, "Gyeeh!"

"Anyway, you two are going to go on your expedition immediately, aren't you?" Sunflora said with a smile. She held out her leaf to me and gestured at the bags around my neck. "Here, why don't you give me that cute pink bag of yours?"

"Huh?"

"I'll keep it safe in your room," she explained, "it'll be there safe and sound until you come home."

That word seemed to echo around inside my head. As I stared at Sunflora, a warm feeling began to rise up inside my chest. I sat down and clutched the strap of my pink bag with my paws, slowly mulling over what she said as I took it off.

"You mean... I can stay here?" I asked in a quiet voice. I could see Sunflora and Loudred staring at me curiously. I guess my question must've seemed odd to them, as they turned toward each other with confused expressions.

"Of course you can stay here, Fée," Sunflora said gently. She took the bag out of my paws and put it around her own neck. I looked up at the flowery Pokémon and saw her bright smile. Sunflora held out her leaves to her side, "you, and Blue as well, can stay here for as long as you like. This is our home, and it's yours as well!"

A wave of emotion flooded through me when I heard that. I wiped my eyes and slowly walked up to Sunflora.

"Thank you, Sunflora," I reached out and pulled Sunflora into an affectionate hug. She looked surprised, considering that it was me who initiated the embrace for once, but she recovered and gently hugged me back.

While still embracing Sunflora, I took the chance to look around the cavern. Soft, green grass covered the floor while bright and warm sunlight streamed through the windows. A beautiful sparkling waterfall spilled down from the ceiling and into a crystal - clear pool of water. Furthermore, all sorts of friendly Pokémon stayed here as well, calling this place their home.

And now, I had a home as well.

* * *

"Everyone was so nice and helpful, weren't they, Blue?"

I skipped across the top of the plateau above my home. When I reached the top of the staircase, I turned around and gave Blue a happy smile. From behind him, I could see the hidden staircase slowly rebuilding itself from inside the tent.

"Yeah, they were all great Pokémon," Blue grinned as he fluffed the fur on my head, "I'd rather steer clear of that Chimecho though. Getting carried in the air like that was a pretty awful experience."

"Hee hee!" I circled around him, whapping him playfully with my tail, "It's your fault for hiding in the water!"

Blue reached down and snagged me on the back of my ruff and began to ruffle my fur in revenge, "Hey, I was tossed into the pool by Loudred. Besides, how was I supposed to know she had psychic powers like Drowzee?"

"I didn't know either!" I retorted as I flattened myself against the ground to escape his paws, "When I first met her, she was really nice and friendly!"

"Could'a fooled me," Blue shrugged as he bent down and helped me back onto my feet. He dusted off my fur for me and smiled, "well, I guess I can't complain too much. She did tell me exactly what's wrong with my leg, and gave me this stuff."

He reached inside the Explorer's Pack at his side and pulled out the packet of Pecha Berries that Chimecho gave him. I watched him as he pulled out a pink, heart – shaped berry from the pack and popped it into his mouth.

"Mm..." he made a thoughtful noise as he chewed the Pecha Berry. After a moment, he swallowed it and licked his lips, "It's pretty sweet. I think I'm going to like these berries."

"You're supposed to eat them when your leg hurts, Blue," I jumped up and confiscated the packet from him before he ate another one, "Pecha Berries contain a special juice that acts as an antidote against most poisons."

I ignored his pouting face as I stuck the packet into my own Explorer's Pack, "It's not as effective as say, a Lum Berry, but Pechas are usually easier to find out in the frontier."

"Lum... Pecha..." Blue rubbed his face as he contemplated my words, "are there any other kind of berries out there?"

"Of course they are!"

I began to list out the various kinds of berries out there in the world as we descended the massive stone staircase that would take us down from the plateau to the town. Blue listened to me attentively as I enthusiastically described to him how some berries have medicinal uses, how some can be used as paints or glues, or how some berries were only good for eating.

"Really? So how does it taste like?"

Every time I listed out a berry you could eat, he would always ask me how it tasted.

"I don't know, I've never tried one before." Was my typical response. I've never really ventured outside my comfort zone of berries you could find and eat within Treasure Town. Usually, most restaurants around here base their meals around a few different types of berry. Of course, apples were commonly used too, but it's the berries that the restaurant picks that sets them all apart from each other.

"Some places serve rare berries like Starf Berries or Lansat berries," I explained to Blue, "but those places are usually really expensive." I shook my head, "I'm not really that rich, so I can only really dream about eating at places that serve berries other than Oran or Leppa."

"Hm, that's a shame," Blue mumbled as I helped him down the last step of the stone staircase, "well, you said explorers make money, right?"

I nodded, "That's right," I pointed toward the cliff wall that the staircase was built into. There were two large, wooden signs embedded on the rock. Both of the signs had layers upon layers of paper stuck on them to the point that they looked like patchwork curtains.

"You see, some townsfolk around here tend to leave requests for explorers to do for them," I looked at one of the requests stuck up on the sign and read it out loud, "'I'm looking for an experienced explorer to take me up to the top of Mount Bristle! I want to see the wonderful sunset at the top of the highest mountain in the frontier!' and the client is offering around... wow! 6,000 Poké!"

"Is that a lot?" Blue was staring at the paper with an intense gaze.

"Yeah, it is!" I replied, "That much money can get you into one of those expensive restaurants I was talking about earlier! Maybe even two!"

"Huh..." Blue made an odd sound and mumbled under his breath, "...maybe I should've kept some... if it meant being able to eat at a good place..."

"Hm?" I didn't quite hear what he said, "Can you repeat that?"

Blue snapped out of his thoughts and shook his head, "No, it's nothing." He patted the ribbon on my right ear and turned away from the sign. I gave him a confused glance, but he just shook his head again and walked away from the wall. I followed after him, still feeling a little confused.

* * *

Even now, the town was still bustling with activity. The gigantic wave of immigrants from yesterday seemed to have bolstered the population of the town. Everywhere we looked, there was at least a crowd of Pokémon wandering or just standing around. Bubbles containing lively conversation and chatter floated up into the air as we strolled through the packed streets. I stuck closely to Blue as I didn't want to repeat yesterday's incident and get separated again.

"Is Treasure Town usually this lively?" Blue remarked as we passed by a group of Cherrim and Flabébé singing a merry little tune at the side of the street.

"Well, it's not usually this packed," I replied as I glanced back at the flowery choir, "but it's usually pretty loud and lively like this all the time."

Feeling cheerful for no real reason, I pranced over in front of Blue and smiled at him, "It's wonderful like that. I love it when the town is filled with happiness and cheer everyday!"

Blue just grinned and nodded at me. He walked over to my side and fluffed the fur on top of my head again, making me feel a little abashed.

The loud roar of water spilling greeted us as we reached the main plaza. The Founder's Fountain was surrounded by Pokémon, mostly those that preferred being in or near the water. Blue and I stopped by the side of the fountain and sat down next to the pool. I noticed that Blue was staring at the statues in the center of the fountain with a curious look in his eye.

"I told you about how Treasure Town was founded by a group of explorers, right?" I said, grabbing his attention. I pointed at the statues with my paw and began to explain, "The Founder's Fountain was named such since the Pokémon who made it based the statues off those explorers who first built the town."

"Oh...?" Blue looked up at the statues again and rubbed his chin. I nodded and began to list off the names of all the founders.

"Let's see... there's the strong, but gentle Golurk," I pointed at the huge, strong – looking Pokémon in the center, "I heard that Golurk singlehandedly carried all the building materials from the forest below and up onto the great plateau so they could start construction on Treasure Town."

I moved my paw over to the strange, bird – like statue hovering above Golurk, "That's Sigilyph. Sigilyph was the one who found the great plateau with his mysterious powers when the group was lost in the frontier."

Then, I gestured toward the large, shelled Pokémon standing beneath Golurk and Sigilyph, "And over there's Torkoal. When the group of them finally reached the great plateau, it was he who suggested that they build the outpost for them to use, as well as other explorers in the future."

"They all sound like really incredible Pokémon," Blue commented. His eyes drifted to the side, where one more statue stood behind the rest. He pointed his paw at the last statue and asked, "What about that guy? What's his story?"

"That's the great explorer, Dusknoir!" I said with a wide smile and a prideful voice, "He's legendary for being _the _most successful solo explorer in all the land!" I ran up to the Great Dusknoir's statue and looked up at it. The statue had an awesome, regal look to it. With Dusknoir's single eye and magnificent collar being expertly carved out of smooth, gray granite.

I turned back to Blue with a certain enthusiasm in my voice and said, "It was Dusknoir who first gathered the founder group and suggested that they explore past the Mount Horn mountain range. It was Dusknoir who discovered thee vast frontier lying beyond the mountains, and it was Dusknoir who paved the path for explorers of all kinds to seek out their dreams here, in Treasure Town!"

"You're pretty knowledgeable about this Dusknoir guy, aren't you, Fée?" Blue remarked with an amused grin on his face. I blushed and looked away from Blue and the statue.

"W – well..." I stammered, "It's always been my dream to become an explorer... and I guess you could say I've always looked up to the Great Dusknoir as kind of a role model."

I turned back to the statue and gave a longing stare into the Great Dusknoir's single eye, "Since I was a little kid, I spent all my days huddled inside a cozy little corner at Mr. Mime's library, read every single book that the Great Dusknoir published." I felt a small smile on my face as I reminisced about my childhood, "I would immerse myself in his stories, and I would pretend that I was just as great of an explorer as Dusknoir."

I gave Blue a shy smile, "You could say it was because of the Great Dusknoir that I became so obsessed with becoming an explorer, hehe..."

Blushing, I reached back with my paw and scratched my head. It was so embarrassing to think about how much of a shut – in I was when I was young.

"Well, you're one step closer to your dream now, aren't you?" I felt Blue tweak my right ear with his paw. I looked up from my paws and saw him grinning at me, "All you have to do now is work hard until you become just as good – no, even better than that Dusknoir guy."

"N – no!" I rejected what he said as I shook my head vehemently, "I can't be better than the Great Dusknoir! That... that's impossible! No, I don't even want to think about that!"

"Why not?" Blue asked, looking surprised, "What has he done that you can't?"

"J – just about everything! He was the one who first found the frontier, first of all. And not to mention, he pretty much explored everything on his own even before that!" I found myself getting breathless as I recited all of Dusknoir's accomplishments from memory, "He's also really, really wise! He's an accomplished scholar and philosopher who wrote hundreds of books about the nature of the world and Pokémon! Not only that, but he's super strong too!"

I pointed at the statue of Dusknoir and said in a loud voice, "I remember reading in one of his books that he once managed to calm an entire herd of rampaging Tauros on his own! An entire herd!"

Blue snorted, "I'll believe it when I see it," I stared at him with my mouth wide open in astonishment as he continued, "As far as I can see, he's just a guy who wrote a lot of books. Once I see him in action, then I'll believe everything he says."

"B – Blue...!" I spluttered at his dismissiveness. How can he say such things about Dusknoir like that? I batted away his paw and glared angrily at him, "I can't accept you demeaning the Great Dusknoir like that! He's an important part of Treasure Town history, and one of my most revered role models! I won't allow you to say anything bad about him!"

"Woah," He took a step back, looking surprised, "I – I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that, Fée, honest."

I sighed as I watched him nervously back up another step. I shook my head dejectedly and calmed myself down.

"No, I'm sorry for snapping at you Blue," I saw him sigh in relief. I glanced over to the Dusknoir statue once more and said, "It's just... I respect the Great Dusknoir, a lot. Like I said, he was the reason why I wanted to become an explorer in the first place, Blue. That's why I don't really like it when people insult or demean him."

Blue sheepishly scratched his nose as he walked back up to my side, "Have you ever met this Dusknoir guy – sorry, the Great Dusknoir."

I took my angry glare off of him and shook my head, "No, I've never met him before." I dipped my paws into the cool fountain water and sighed, "The Great Dusknoir wouldn't want to meet someone like me anyway. I'm just a nobody who just became an explorer."

"Fée..."

"But, if I could meet the Great Dusknoir..." I turned to Blue and smiled widely. Suddenly, I felt a strange urge come up inside me as I began to imagine actually meeting the great Dusknoir.

"If I could meet the great Dusknoir," I spun around and snagged onto my new Explorer's Pack with my paws, "I definitely want his autograph! Do you think he'd rather autograph my Explorer's Pack or my pink bag? Oh no, but if I want him to sign my pink bag, I need to fix it first... It looks too rubbishy for him to sign."

"Fée...?" Blue looked a little taken aback by my sudden change in demeanor.

I shook my head and held my paw under my chin, pondering, "Hm... no, maybe it's too lame if I just have him sign my bags." I clapped my paws together and thought of something, "What if I went out and bought a copy of his book at Kecleon's and have him sign that instead? Oooh, now that's an idea! I'll have him sign a copy of 'Dusknoir's Travels,' that'll show him that I'm a big fan of his and show him how much I love exploring!"

My eyes were positively glittering with excitement as I imagined meeting my idol in person. I cuddled my new Explorer's Pack as I continued to ramble on and on about what I could do if I actually did meet the Great Dusknoir.

"Fée..." I heard Blue sigh in exasperation before I launched into another what if situation.

* * *

"Did you get all of that out of your system now?" Blue remarked with a grin as we walked away from the Founder's Fountain, and in turn, away from the Main Plaza. My ears were covering my eyes while we walked, and I was relying on Blue's paw on my back to guide me around.

As for why I was doing something so strange, it was because I really, really wanted to just run off and dig a hole for myself somewhere far away and just sit in it until this burning shame inside of me peters out. I can't believe I ended up losing control of myself like that, and in public no less. I grumbled and strained to lower my ears even further down my face. I didn't want to see anyone, and I didn't want anyone to see me.

I heard Blue chuckle in amusement beside me as we continued to walk down the street. I grumbled again. At least somebody was having fun at my expense.

"So Guildmaster Wigglytuff and Chatot wanted us to find this Duskull guy, right?" I heard Blue say, followed by the sound of paper rustling. He must be taking out the letter that Chatot handed us.

"Mmhhh..." I replied with a low, confirming mumble. I heard another amused chuckle from the Riolu again.

"You know, if you keep covering your eyes like that, we're never going to get anywhere," he remarked. I felt a twinge of annoyance inside me.

"I'll open my eyes when completely forget about what just happened," I shot back.

Blue let out a bark – like laugh and patted me on the back, making me grumble irritatedly even more.

"Well, maybe you'll forget a few things if I throw you in the ocean, Fée," Blue joked, "who knows, if it worked for me, it might work for you!"

I shook my head and raised up my right ear to peer at Blue. He was grinning his usual dumb grin and looking completely carefree and casual. I sighed and shook my head again. Just how can he joke about such things so easily? Time and time again, I found myself dumbfounded by just how nonchalant my friend is. I was about to replace my ear over my eye again when he suddenly stopped and pointed at something ahead.

"Oh hey, Fée, what's that?"

My natural curiosity made both of my ears suddenly spring up, revealing my glowing red face. I glanced around quickly, wondering what Blue saw. But all I could see was the road and other Pokémon passing by. I turned toward Blue, preparing to ask him what he saw when a sudden blue blur flitted across my vision. Suddenly, I felt a heavy pressure against my cheeks.

"Eek!" I cried out of surprise. My eyes widened out of shock as I saw Blue's grinning face fill my sight. His paws surrounded my face as he pinched my cheeks. He began to wiggle them up and down playfully as I struggled to get him to let go.

"Leggo of my chweeks, Bwoo!" I blubbered at him, "Bweeeh!"

"Only if you stop covering your eyes," he said evilly as he continued to wiggle my face around as if I was a piece of dough. After struggling in vain to get loose from his grip, I sighed, gave up, and nodded. He beamed at me and finally let go of my face. I pawed my sore cheeks and sent the grinning Riolu an angry glare.

"Anyway, here you go," Blue's paw suddenly flicked up and grabbed onto something. When he lowered his arm, he was somehow holding onto the envelope that Chatot handed us. I tilted my head to the side, did he throw that important envelope up into the air as he was pinching my cheeks?!

As I was mulling over whether or not he did such an outrageous act, he shoved the envelope in front of my face.

"Can you read this, Fée?" He asked, gesturing to the words written on the paper. I glanced at the envelope, then at Blue. The writing was only a few lines, and only showed the address of the recipient. It wasn't really that difficult to read.

"Why?" I asked, tilting my head, "It's just an address, Blue."

"Oh... an address?" Blue flipped the envelope back to him and squinted his eyes. He scratched the back of his head as he read the address on the envelope. After a few seconds, he sighed and shrugged his shoulders.

"Blue..." A small, nagging suspicious appeared at the back of my mind as I watched him grumble over the envelope, "you... can't read?"

Blue looked up from the envelope and stared at me for a few seconds. Then, in a dejected way, he slowly shook his head. I felt my mouth hang open.

"But... you can talk! You can understand what I'm saying, right?"

Blue frowned and folded his arms, "Of course I can." He flicked the envelope in front of me indignantly, "I just can't read, that's all."

I shook my head and thought deeply about what he said. If he could speak and understand speech just fine, but he can't read or write, then wouldn't that mean he couldn't read or write since before he lost his memory? He could draw, that was something I was definitely sure of, but being unable to read or write... just what kind of life did he lead before I found him?

"Fée? Is there a problem?"

"N – no, there isn't a problem at all," I stammered, snapping myself out of my thoughts. I glanced at his paw, which was still holding the envelope.

"H – here, give it to me. I'll read it for you then." I snatched the envelope out of his grasp with my mouth. I dropped it onto my paws and flipped it over, revealing the address written on the paper. Blue sidled over to my side and glanced over my shoulder curiously.

"Um... it says that this is for Duskull, who lives at..." I paused.

"Yeah? Where is it?" Blue asked, prodding me in the back of the head.

I shook his paw off the back of my head and moved the envelope closer to my eyes. I read out the words in my head, trying to see if I had imagined it.

"'Phantom Pâtisserie?'" I spoke in an unbelieving tone.

A bakery? A phantom bakery? I looked away from the envelope, allowing my mind some time to process what I just read. Then, I looked back. Yep, there it was, written in bold, plain letters. 'Phantom Pâtisserie.'

In my mind, I conjured up a strange image of a half – transparent building, surrounded by floating gray loaves of bread. It was such an odd image that I actually felt a little strange just thinking about it. Shaking my head, I dismissed the thought of a ghostly building and looked back at the envelope at the rest of the address.

"It's... actually in town...?" I stared blankly at the words 'Treasure Town, Shopping District,' followed by a series of numbers. In all my years of living here in Treasure Town, I have not once ever heard of a place called 'Phantom Pâtisserie.' Not to mention, I have never heard anyone ever talk about such a... unique sounding bakery before.

I looked up at Blue, who was waiting for me to explain what I just said with an eager look on his face.

Um... how do I explain this to him?

'It... it looks like we're going to a ghost house."


	18. A Tantalizing Fruit

**•**

** Chapter 17:**

**"...a tantalizing fruit..."**

Now, Treasure Town was built on a great plateau; essentially it was a tall mountain with a wide, flat top. When the Founders first decided they were going to build their outpost, they decided to start far, far away from the sides of the plateau. As a result, the first part of the town built was the Main Plaza. From there, construction of the town naturally splintered outward like a Spinarak spinning a web.

Dirt roads stretched out from the plaza, with buildings naturally cropping up from the ground beside them. Then, as more and more Pokémon moved into Treasure Town, more roads and buildings had to be built in order to accommodate them. Now, with all its winding roads and tall buildings, Treasure Town barely resembles its humble beginnings as a small outpost for explorers.

As for me, I began living here in Treasure Town fairly late into its history. When I first arrived, the town was already a bustling metropolis. The former dirt roads were now paved with cobblestone and soft gravel; while tall, stone or woodwork buildings rose up at its sides. Tall, metal lamps lined up at the side of the roads, casting light on the streets when night falls.

Speaking of those stone and woodwork buildings. Many of those buildings were built to house the many residents of the town; whether they be residents, visitors, or immigrants. That's not to say every building is a home though. Lots of Pokémon decided to open shops, inns, or cafes in Treasure Town; peddling their wares or offering various services to their customers.

Well, basically where I'm going with this is that Treasure Town is filled with all sorts of unique buildings and stores. There's so many different Pokémon running so many different stores that even I, for all the time I've lived here in this town, haven't been able to personally see every single one of them yet.

Which brings me to my next point. I've definitely never visited a place called "Phantom Pâtisserie" before. To be frank, with a name like that; I wouldn't have wanted to anyway.

* * *

I felt a cold chill run down my back when Blue and I finally reached the address written on the envelope. It had lead us to the extreme outskirts of the town, far away from the hustle and bustle of the town. Compared to the liveliness of the Main Plaza or the Shopping District, there were almost no Pokémon around here at all. All I could see from where I was standing was the edge of the great plateau, the sky, and a creepy little shack looming right in front of us.

"Well, here we are..."

The shack was built out of some sort of dark, almost black – colored wood. The entire thing looked old and creaky. In fact, it looked as though the entire thing was crooked. The house was leaning far to one side, looking as though it was about to topple over at any moment. The windows on the shack had no glass. Instead, the owner just decided to cover over the gaping holes with long, dust – covered curtains. Slats of wood were nailed all over the roof in a haphazard fashion to replace all the missing tiles and shingles. Overall, the entire place just screamed _HAUNTED HOUSE_ to me.

At first, I thought that we had the wrong address. However, my hopes of leaving this eerie place was dashed when Blue found a signpost stuck in the ground near the shack. Upon reading the crude writing on it, I had no choice but to accept the fact that this old, terrifying hut out in the middle of nowhere was indeed the Phantom Pâtisserie we were looking for.

"I can't imagine the owner getting a lot of customers if the building's all the way out here," Blue remarked as he examined the words on the signpost, "it took us a pretty long time to get to here from the center of town. No wonder there's no other Pokémon around."

"T – that's what you're worried about?" I stuttered back at him as I clung to his tail with my eyes squeezed shut. I was afraid that if I continued to look at the building, my legs would give out from under me out of fear.

"Well if you think about it," Blue said in a casual voice, "it would make sense to build a store nearer to where the customers would be, don't you think?"

"S – seriously?" My astonished voice was muffled as I stuck my face into his tail, "I – if that h – haunted house was anywhere closer to the ce – center of the town, t – there would be P – P – Pokémon fainting all over the place!"

Blue made a thoughtful noise and said, "Really? To me, it just looks like an old, run down building. I don't see anything haunted about it at all."

Just where does this guy get his endless supply of courage from? Someone, please tell me so I can get some as well!

"Well," Blue said, "nothing's going to happen if we just stay standing here." He shrugged and began to walk forward, "Come on Fée, let's get moving."

"H – hold on!" I tried to protest, but Blue had already begun to move toward the terrifying house. I found myself dragged against my will as I continued to cling onto his tail in a desperate attempt to stop us from getting any closer to the ghastly shack. I planted all four of my paws deep into the ground and hung onto his tail with my teeth for dear life. Despite my best attempts though, Blue was unfazed by my resistance and just continued on with his march.

"Mmmphh!" I shouted through a mouthful of blue fur. A trail of upturned dirt stretched out behind us as I continued to anchor my paws in the dirt in a futile attempt to make him stop. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched in horror as the black – colored hut loomed closer and closer. The curtains were fluttering in the morning breeze. Every few seconds, it the wind would make a small gap between the curtain and the wall, just wide enough so that I could catch a glimpse of what was behind it.

And from that gap, I spotted a glowing eye staring right at me.

That was the last straw. I felt my blood run cold as I stared into that glowing, red orb from behind the curtains. I found myself transfixed by the eerie light behind the curtains. Then, as I tried to pull myself away from the sight, I saw a stark white skull emerge from within the darkness, encasing the glowing orb.

I released the grip I had on Blue's tail with my mouth; scattering strands of blue fur all over the place.

"Eeee..."

The last thing I heard before I blanked out was the odd noise that escaped from my throat.

* * *

"...hink she's waking up now..."

A voice from somewhere above me stirred me from my sleep. With my eyes still shut tight, I yawned and stretched my legs. I was lying on something soft and warm. It was nice and comfortable, but it only made me want to lie back down and return to sleep.

Well, maybe that's not such a bad thing. I did just have a pretty bad dream. Maybe if I go back to sleep, I'll have a nicer dream without spooky houses. I took a deep breath and curled up into a small ball.

"Hey, sleepyhead, don't go back to sleep again."

There was that voice again. This time, the voice was accompanied by something hard poking against my cheek. Annoyed, I reached up with my own paw and swatted it away. I wanted to go back to sleep, so don't annoy me!

"Fée..." I heard the voice say my name, followed by an exasperated sigh. Just out of curiosity, I peeked open one of my eyes to see who it was. Strangely though, all I could see through my half – opened eyes was a furry mass of blue.

"Hm...?" I mumbled in a drowsy daze. I prodded the strange blueness with my paw, wondering what it was. All of a sudden, a light chuckling sound came from above me. Curious, and also a little amused, I poked it again, eliciting another wave of laughs from somewhere above me.

"That tickles!" The voice said in between bouts of laughter, "Cut it out Fée, you're gonna make me spill my drink!"

Actually... now that I think about it, that voice sounds familiar. I opened up my eyes a little bit wider and tilted up my head. There, hovering above me, was Blue's laughing face. At first, I couldn't quite understand why his head was floating above me. But, as I turned my head to the left, I came in contact with the strange, blue – furred thing I was prodding. It was his chest.

"Eh...?" Feeling a little bit more awake now, my mind immediately began to process where I was. First of all, everything around us was dark and gloomy. Next, I appeared to be lying on top of Blue's lap, and finally, there was a white skull floating above us.

I stared idly at the skull for a few seconds before everything finally clicked inside my head.

"EEEEH?!"

With an echoing shriek, I sprung off Blue's lap in fear. He uttered a yelp of surprise as the rickety chair he was sitting on clattered onto the floor. The mug he was holding in his paws spun into the air, splattering onto the wooden floor.

Scared out of my wits, I darted around the dim room, looking for something to hide behind. Panting frantically, I noticed out of the corner of my eye a particularly large, ancient – looking oven standing in the corner of the room. Without any hesitation, I zipped over to the over to the oven and wedged myself between it and the wall. I squeezed my eyes shut, hoping that everything would just vanish eventually.

"Sorry, I'm really sorry!" I heard Blue apologize profusely from behind my hiding spot, "Here, let me get that for you."

"Mmm... there's no need for apologies," someone else spoke in response to Blue's apology. I didn't recognize the Pokémon's voice. Swallowing my fear, I leaned out from my hiding spot to peek at who was talking. Immediately, I regretted following my curiosity.

"Mmm..." The Pokémon was hovering a few inches off the ground like a balloon. It looked like it was covered in one of the gray curtains that was hanging off the wall. But, what really made it terrifying though, was that its face resembled a stark, white skull. Furthermore, underneath that skull was a single, glowing red eye.

"Eek!" I cried out in fear again and ducked back behind the oven, hiding myself from that spooky eye. I clutched my tail between my paws and shivered fearfully. From my hiding spot, I could hear Blue sigh in exasperation.

"Fée, you don't have to be scared," I heard footsteps coming toward me as Blue spoke. I timidly opened one of my eyes and saw Blue staring at me from outside my hiding spot, an amused look on his face.

"H – how can you expect me t – to not be scared?!" I stammered back at him, "W – we're in a haunted house! The – there's even a g – g – ghost floating around!"

"Ghost...?" Blue looked confused. I saw him glance away from me, presumably at the ghost hovering back in the room. "Oh, you mean Duskull?"

"D – Duskull?"

Blue turned back to me and nodded, "Yep, that's Duskull." He extended his paw out to me and said, "He's the guy that Wigglytuff and Chatot wanted us to find."

"H – he is?!" I replied in disbelief. Blue nodded again, confirming my fears.

"Now come on, get out from behind there," Blue urged, waving his paw at me, "you're holding the letter we're supposed to be giving him, remember?"

"Ergh..." True, I did have the letter that the Guildmaster gave us still inside my bag. Inside, I knew that I had to come out eventually. Without giving that ghost... I mean, Duskull, the letter, there's no way we can continue with our expedition. A furious tug – of – war was raging on inside my heart. It was a two – way battle between my fear and my desire to continue with our objective.

"Fée?"

Blue's questioning glance made me feel uneasy. I knew that the reason we're on this expedition was to find a cure for his leg. And here, I was ruining our plans because of how scared I was of that Duskull. Was I really that big of a coward to allow Blue to continue suffering because I was scared of that Duskull?

I held up my paw to my ear and touched the ribbon Blue gave me. No, I promised him, and myself that I won't be a coward anymore. I scrunched up my face and gathered up all the courage I had inside of me. The tug – of – war continued to rage on inside me, but this time, I took the side against my fear. With a single pull, I felt my fear fall forward and melt away.

"A – alright..." I spoke in a quiet voice as I let go of my tail. I took the paw that Blue was offering and allowed him to pull me out of the gap. Dust motes burst out from behind the oven as I popped out from behind it. I coughed as the dust got into my nose and mouth.

"Mmm... much apologies," from in between coughs, I heard Duskull apologize to me. He had a deep, tired sounding voice like that of an old man, "I don't usually get many visitors, therefore, my abode may be a little bit unclean..."

"No, it's – cough! – It's fine...!" I tried to say as I tried to clear the dust from my throat, "I... I shouldn't have ran back – cough! – there in the first place...!"

"Mmm..." Duskull made a mumbling noise as he hovered toward me. I involuntarily found myself freezing in fear as the skull – like face neared my own. It took all the strength I could muster to keep myself from ducking into the dust – filled gap again.

His gray robes suddenly began to elongate, stretching itself toward me. Gulping, I squeezed my eyes shut, afraid of what might happen next. His robe touched my face, making me shudder. But, as I was beginning to imagine the worst, he suddenly began to slowly brush the dust off my fur in a gentle manner with his robe.

"Mmm... you needn't be so afraid, young one," I heard Duskull say in a soft voice. I opened my eyes as he retracted his robe away from me. I felt the fur on my face and found that he has cleaned off all the dirt and dust off.

"T... thank you," I said in a hurried voice as I bowed my head down.

"Mmm... hm, hm, hm..." Duskull appeared to chuckle at my show of gratitude. He hovered back toward the center of the room, still chuckling to himself.

Now that I was less panicked, I could fully survey the inside of the house. To my surprise, it actually did resemble the storefront of a bakery. It was a single room house, with the entire front side of the building being used as a storefront. In the center of the room was a small, round table that was surrounded by rickety chairs. Ovens, stoves and shelves lined the sides of the house, giving credence that this really was a bakery.

A single long, wooden counter stretched across the front of the store, with an equally long white tablecloth covering it. On the surface of the counter were several different kinds of pastries and bread. Curious about what kinds of bread they were, I wandered over to the counter to take a closer look. To my surprise, the pastries and bread looked amazingly delicious, despite that they were being sold inside the most horrifying – looking bakery I have ever seen.

Displayed in a neat line on the counter, there were donuts covered with a sugary glaze, fluffy loaves of bread with colorful berries embedded inside of them, small sweet puffs decorated with delectable swirls of cream, and even small confectioneries like cakes and berry candies.

"Mmm... are you hungry, by any chance...?" I jumped with a start when I heard Duskull speak from beside me. I turned around and saw the robed Pokémon reach out to the counter top and pick up a small cream puff. He withdrew a small, cute – looking plate from underneath the counter and placed the puff on top of it. Then, he turned toward me and handed it to me.

"Oh... this looks delicious!" I felt my mouth begin to water as I stared at the creamy pastry in my paws. I looked up at the ghostly Pokémon and asked, "Can I really have this?"

"Mmm... of course you can," Duskull said as he nodded, "you can consider it my apology for scaring you earlier, if you'd like."

"N – no, you don't have to apologize. If anything, I should be the one saying sorry for acting that way in your store, Mr. Duskull."

"Mmm... you needn't call me mister," Duskull chuckled in a lighthearted manner, "it makes me feel much older than I already am."

The robed Pokémon hovered over to the counter again and picked up a loaf of bread. He brought it over to Blue, who was busy picking up the chair that I accidentally knocked over earlier.

"Here Blue, you may have this," Duskull said as he offered the bread to Blue, "it's a loaf of white bread baked with a mixture of Pecha and Oran Berries. I'm sure you'll find it quite soothing."

"Thank you, Duskull," Blue said as he graciously accepted the loaf of bread from Duskull. Taking great care not to drop the pastry, I bit the plate with my teeth and brought it over to the center table. Pulling up a seat next to Blue, I sat at the table and prepared myself to eat the cream puff.

First, I leaned down and licked the cream that was spread all over the top of the puff. I felt my eyes sparkle as the delicious chocolate taste danced around the top of my tongue. It was sweet, but not too sweet. Instead, it hit the perfect balance between sweetness and bitterness, giving it an exquisitely unique taste.

"This... this is delicious!" I couldn't hold back my glee as I continued to lick the cream. I heard Duskull chuckle in response to my outburst.

I took a quick glance over to Duskull, who had floated off to one of the ovens at the side of the room. I noticed that a pleasant scent was wafting from the inside of the oven, making me wonder what he was making. Feeling a little eager, I turned back to my dessert and took a big bite out of the puff.

As soon as it entered my mouth, the bread expanded to have a delightful, fluffy texture. I clapped my paws over my cheeks as I savored the heavenly taste inside my mouth. It was sooo good!

"Mmm... it's been quite some time since I've had visitors as young as you two," Duskull said as he busied himself with the oven, "it's quite a refreshing feeling. Makes me feel as though I am a few decades younger, hm, hm, hm..."

"Mist– I mean, Duskull," I said as I swallowed the delicious puff, "how long have you been running this bakery?"

"Mmm..." Duskull made a thoughtful noise as he mulled over my question, "I believe since the earliest days of Treasure Town."

"Really?" I said with enthusiasm, "Then that means you were there when the Founders first built the town?"

"Mmm..."

I excitedly placed my paws on the table and looked at the robed Pokémon with eagerness in my eyes, "Does that mean you were an explorer as well, Duskull?"

"I am not," Duskull shook his head, making me shrink back into my seat in disappointment. He chuckled and said, "I am but a simple baker."

A short ding rang out from the oven that Duskull was using. The robed Pokémon hovered down and pulled open the door to the over. A large plume of white smoke bloomed from within the oven, enveloping the room with a wonderful aroma.

"Now, Torkoal, Golurk, Sigilyph and Dusknoir," Duskskull said as he emerged from within the cloud of smoke holding a tray of freshly – baked biscuits. He placed the tray on the table in front of us and chuckled, "never a more inspiring group of young'uns I have ever met."

"Wow..." I spoke in an admiring voice as I stared at the golden – brown biscuits on the tray, "what were the Founders like, if you don't me asking, that is."

"Mmm..." Duskull paused for a moment before shaking his head, "I'm afraid I can't quite answer your question, Fée."

"Eh? Why not?"

Duskull hovered over to the oven, which was still emitting white clouds of smoke, and shut the door. "I apologize if I made it seem a little unclear. I did not actually meet the Founders in person, however, I have indeed seen them around town back in their heyday."

"I see..."

"You're disappointed that Duskull can't tell you anything about Dusknoir, right?" Blue chuckled and tore away a chunk of bread from his loaf with his teeth. Blushing a little, I sheepishly nodded and took another bite out of my puff as well.

"Mmm... Dusknoir, hm?" Duskull conjured up another adorable little plate from underneath the counter and brought it over to the table. He began to stack the biscuits on top of the plate in a pretty little pyramid as he spoke, "I see he's still quite popular with the youth of today as well, hm, hm, hm..."

"Was he popular back then too?" I inquired.

Duskull lifted the plate of biscuits and put it on the counter next to the rest of the confectioneries and breads. He emitted another amused chuckle as he joined Blue and I at the table.

"I suppose he was," Duskull said, "just having his presence around back then was enough to bring all sorts of Pokémon over to the little shantytown they had built back then."

"Was he really that influential?" Blue asked with his mouth full, spraying breadcrumbs all over the table.

"Mmm... I would presume so," Duskull brought a small towelette over to the table and began to wipe the crumbs off, "No, perhaps it would be better to say that if it wasn't for Dusknoir, Treasure Town as it is now wouldn't have existed."

"You know," Blue said as he took the towelette from Duskull, "I saw a statue of Dusknoir back at the Main Plaza." Blue paused to wipe the crumbs off his mouth with the towelette.

"Mmm... indeed," Duskull replied, "a few years after Treasure Town became... well, a town... a group of skilled stonemasons arrived and offered to sculpt and build a fountain for the town."

"But you know, you kinda resemble that statue of Dusknoir," Blue remarked, pointing at the robed Pokémon, "maybe not exactly, but you do kinda look like him."

"Mmm... the resemblance is only superficial, I assure you." With a chuckle, Duskull took the towelette from Blue and placed it in a sink. "Though, I must admit, if I was related to the Great Dusknoir, perhaps I would have more customers... mmm..."

"Your food is great though," Blue remarked, "maybe the reason why you don't have that many customers is because your store is too far away from the Main Plaza?"

"I... don't think that's the reason why," I mumbled as I nibbled on the puff.

"Mmm... I'm sure there's a myriad of reasons why my store is so... unpopular, hm, hm, hm..."

Feeling a little abashed, I lowered my head and polished off my cream puff. Blue had a point though, the pastries that Duskull made are incredible. None of the other restaurants back in the center of the town offered anything this good! If Duskull would be willing to change how his store looked like, at least from the outside, I believe that "Phantom Patisserie" had the chance to become a really popular bakery!

"So... I believe you spoke something about a letter for me...?" Duskull turned his skull face toward me. Now that I was more used to him, I wasn't quite as afraid of his face as before.

"Oh, that's right!" I nodded at Duskull and pulled up my Explorer's Pack. After rummaging around inside the jam – packed bag for a few seconds, I withdrew the white, oblong envelope and handed it over to Duskull.

"Mmm..." Taking the letter from my paws, Duskull held it up in front of his single eye and scrutinized it. Then, he wedged his robe underneath the envelope's flap and delicately opened it up. From within the envelope, he withdrew a small sheet of paper.

"Want a piece, Fée?"

I turned around and saw Blue offering me a chunk of his berry bread. I nodded and took a small piece of the loaf from him. The bread was fluffy and warm. I could see small bits and pieces of pink Pecha and blue Oran Berries poking out from within its white interior. Popping it into my mouth, I was rewarded with a delightful mixture of sweetness and sourness. Coupled with the soft, fluffy bread, the two contrasting flavors of the berries created a really distinctive combination!

"I see... so you're looking for the Panacea, hm...?"

"Mmhm!" I nodded at Duskull while reaching over to Blue's plate and sneakily pulling away another piece of his bread. I took another bite out of Blue's bread and chewed thoughtfully, savoring the flavor.

"Would you mind telling this old man as to why you're interested in such a thing?" Duskull inquired, gazing at me with a curious look in his single eye.

I swallowed my mouthful of berry bread and pointed at Blue with my paw, "It's for him, Duskull."

"Blue?" Duskull transferred his gaze over to Blue, who was still busy stuffing his mouth with the remaining bread on his plate. His pudgy cheeks wobbled as he nodded at Duskull.

"Mmm..." Duskull hovered over to Blue's side and looked him over with his eye, "I didn't think your leg was that badly injured, Blue."

Blue took a big gulp and swallowed all of the bread that was in his mouth. Taking a deep breath, he grinned at Duskull and said, "Well, I didn't think so either at first," He lightly patted his right leg and leaned back on his chair, "but I was told that the only way it could be healed was by the use of that Panacea thing."

"He was bitten by a Kabuto a few days ago," I explained to Duskull, "his leg was poisoned by that Pokémon, and it's been hurting him ever since."

"Mmm... I see," Duskull looked down at Blue's leg, "To still be able to walk while suffering from such an ailment... you must have a strong body, or perhaps a strong will."

"Something like that, I suppose," Blue remarked casually, "I wouldn't mind being poisoned all the time if it meant I get to keep eating Pecha Berries, heh."

"Blue!" I slapped him on the paw and glared.

"It was just a joke, Fée," Blue replied with a grin as he rubbed his paw, "to be honest though, I would like to be able to go up and down stairs without needing help all the time."

He gave me a knowing grin and patted me on the head. Sighing, I shook my head and turned to look at Duskull with a pleading look in my eye.

"Please, Duskull," I said, "can you tell us where the Panacea is?"

"Mmm..." Duskull's eye seemed to dull in color as he considered what I said. After a moment of tense silence, Duskull's eye regained its regular sheen again and he said, "Fée, has your Guildmaster spoken to you about anything regarding speaking about the Panacea?"

"Um..." I thought back to what the Guildmaster and Chatot told me, "They... they said that it was a secret, and that Blue and I weren't allowed to speak anything about it to anybody."

"That is correct," Duskull nodded his head, "now, I leave you with a question for you to answer..."

The robed Pokémon moved toward the counter and took a single biscuit off the pyramid. He hovered over Blue and I, holding the biscuit in front of us. We stared curiously at the golden brown cookie, wondering what he meant by it.

"The Panacea Elixir... mmm..." Duskull placed the biscuit on top of a napkin, and then placed it in the center of the table, "indeed, it is quite a powerful medicine."

Duskull swooped over to one of the shelves and withdrew a small tin can. He began to sprinkle sparkly, sugary – smelling sprinkles over the biscuit from the can. Slowly, the biscuit began to glimmer and glisten as he continued to embellish it.

"Potent, miraculous, life – saving..." he finished garnishing the biscuit and placed the tin can on the table. He held up the cookie and presented it to us, "and most dangerous of all... rare."

"Dangerous...?" I echoed, "What do you mean by that?"

Duskull moved back to the pyramid of biscuits on the counter. He placed the single sparkling biscuit on top of the stack. It sparkled at the apex of the pyramid, standing out from the rest with the glittering bits of sugar covering it.

"It is a treasure beyond the rest. The most powerful medicine in the world." Duskull shook his head and turned to face us, "That is why it is dangerous, Fée."

"I've lived for far longer than most. Through my many years through life, I've seen many different kinds of Pokémon out there in the world." He paused to let his words sink in, "I've seen selfish Pokémon that would exploit others for their own gain. I've seen exploitative Pokémon that would abuse the needy. I've seen violent Pokémon that would force others to give them their possessions."

Duskull returned to the table and sighed heavily. He turned toward Blue and posed him a question, "Blue, for these kinds of Pokémon; how do you think they will react if they hear about a medicine that has the capability to cure anything?"

Blue covered his chin with his paw and mulled over his question.

"I would think that those Pokémon would take the Panacea for themselves," Blue answered, "they would probably all fight each other for the medicine."

"Do you think that if one of those Pokémon does obtain the Panacea, would he be willing to share it?"

Blue shook his head, "No, probably not." He held out a paw and said in a serious voice, "If that Pokémon is as greedy as you said, then he probably keep it all for himself."

"Mmm... perhaps he would."

"That Pokémon might also try to sell use of the Panacea to others," I added, making the two of them turn their heads to me, "I mean, it's like you said Duskull. That Pokémon could be exploiting the needy."

"Like... for example: That Pokémon might demand that I give him a large sum of Poké for him to cure Blue using the Panacea."

"Mmm... very astute observation, Fée," Duskull said, nodding his head. He held up the Guildmaster's letter and slid it over to us, "The both of you are very much correct in your assumptions."

"But... that's so greedy!" I said in a dejected tone as I picked up the letter, "How can someone even think about abusing others for the sake of money?"

"Alas, such Pokémon do exist in this world, Fée." Duskull spoke with a shake of his head, "For many Pokémon, the idea of an all – curing medicine is nothing more to them than a tantalizing fruit that can be sold for monetary gain."

I fell silent. A disgusting feeling was boiling down deep inside of me at the thought of Pokémon like that. I knew that selfish and mean Pokémon existed in this world; just like that Koffing and Zubat pair. I just didn't want to believe that it was the norm.

"Mmm... well, it wasn't my intention to scare you with the world of adults, hm, hm..." Duskull chuckled, snapping me out of my dark thoughts, "you two seem like a pair of nice, upstanding young'uns, however. I see no reason to believe that you two are only here to beguile an old baker such as I."

"No!" I quickly shook my head and slammed my paws on the table, making the plates jitter and shake wildly. I leaned forward and shouted, "I would never do such a thing to you, Duskull! Never!"

"Mmm..." Duskull serenely floated over the table and placed his robe on the plates, stopping the noise, "you make an old Pokémon happy to hear that, Fée."

"You can trust us, Duskull," Blue said in a confident voice. He held his paw over his chest and nodded respectfully at the robed Pokémon, "I don't understand too much about money or anything like that, so I don't really care about abusing the Panacea for Poké or whatever."

"Hm, hm, hm..." Duskull covered his skull – like face with his robe and chuckled, "you're an amusing one, Blue. If only the world had more Pokémon that thought like you do."

"No, no," I shook my paw at Duskull, "that would cause more issues than it would help, really."

"Hey, what is that supposed to mean?" Blue said in mock indignation. I giggled and shook my head.

"I'm just kidding, Blue." I patted his paw to show my sincerity, "Even if you're a little strange, I like you the way you are."

"Strange?" Blue glanced at the white protrusions at the back of his paws with a curious gaze, "I don't see what makes me so strange..."

Shaking my head, I left Blue to his own thoughts and turned back to Duskull. The robed Pokémon appeared to have conjured up a piece of paper from somewhere and was busy scribbling down something on it. I tried to sneak a look at what he was writing by craning my neck over the table.

But in the end, I didn't need to. Right as I reached the perfect angle to peek, Duskull stopped writing and folded the paper in half. He took the paper and slid it across the table toward me.

"What's this?" I attempted to open the folded message, but Duskull quickly stopped me by placing his robe on the paper.

"Be wary, Fée." He commanded, keeping his robe tightly pressed against the paper, "within that paper contains the location of the Panacea..." I saw Duskull's eyes flit toward one of the open windows on the wall, "this house contains many holes and very little privacy. Open that paper when you're sure you're alone and safe."

I glanced over to the window as well. For a fraction of a second, I thought I saw two shadows vanish from behind the curtains. I don't know if I imagined it or not, but I didn't want to risk anything. Sensing danger, I shoved the paper into my Explorer's Pack. I nodded at Duskull with a serious expression on my face.

"Thank you Duskull," I grabbed Blue's attention by patting him on the shoulder. We got off our seats and bowed to the old, robed Pokémon. Duskull chuckled again and hovered over to the display counter at the front of the store.

"Mmm... the trip to the Panacea wont take very long," Duskull pulled out a small, colorful bag from underneath the counter and began to fill it up with the various confectioneries on display. "but, just in case the two of you get peckish along the way, allow this old baker to offer you some snacks."

As Blue and I made our way over to the other side of the counter, Duskull placed the bulging bag in front of us. I eyed the little dusty cash register sitting at the side of the counter and instinctively reached for my pack for some money.

"No, you needn't pay me any money," Duskull stopped me right as I was about to place some coins on the counter, "you made this old Pokémon very happy by just providing me some company. Consider this my show of gratitude to the two of you."

"Thank you for all your help, Duskull." I said, beaming as I graciously accepted his bag of pastries, "I promise I'll come by and visit you again sometime."

"I'll come too," Blue grinned and patted my head, "your food's great. I can't wait to eat some more!"

Duskull covered his face with his robe and chuckled happily. When he showed his face again, I imagined that there was a big smile behind his skull – shaped face.

"Mmm... you two have given me something nice to look forward to in the future." He bowed low at us and said in a grateful voice, "Thank you, Fée. Thank you, Blue."

* * *

Fée and Blue walked away from the store, waving goodbye to the nice old Pokémon inside. After the two happy explorers vanished back into the forest of buildings that was the town proper, Duskull closed the door to his store with a quiet creaking noise, followed by the sound of a lock being replaced. Once more, peace and quiet returned to the area around the Phantom Pâtisserie.

"Woah, ho, ho..."

A peculiar laugh wafted through the silent air. From behind the creaky old building, two floating Pokémon came out of hiding.

"I heard it all, I did," one of the Pokémon opened his mouth into a wide grin, allowing a wisp of brown gas to escape from within, "those two... the coward and the Riolu, they're up to something interesting. Don't you think, Zubat?"

The purple, bat – like Pokémon that was flapping in the air beside Koffing mirrored his grin, "Meh, heh, heh... that's right. I heard it too. They were saying something about a valuable item, weren't they?"

Zubat hovered above Koffing for a moment before landing on top of his rounded head. He clung on tightly to the gas ball's head as the two of them began to float after the Eevee and the Riolu.

"I heard them talking about how you could make a lot of Poké from this item," Koffing replied, "it was called the pa... peh... puu..." his face scrunched up as he tried his hardest to remember the name of the item.

"Don't hurt your tiny brain, you numbskull," Zubat retorted, slapping Koffing on top of his head with his wing, "I remember it just fine. It was called the Panacea Elixir, and they said that it was some sort of super medicine."

"Oh yeah! That's right, it was the Panacea!"

Zubat grinned, "If we can find this medicine before they can, then we can steal it right from under that coward's nose."

"And then we can give it to the boss," Koffing added, "he'll be so proud of us if we bring him this valuable treasure! Maybe he'll even forgive us for our last mistake..."

"Those two will pay for what they did to us," Zubat felt his smile twist into a disgusted frown as he remembered the pain he and Koffing went through back at the Beach Cave, "I'll make sure they'll rue the day they screwed around with us!"

"That Riolu threw a rock in my mouth... it really hurt, Zubat," Koffing said in a pained voice as he shook his head, nearly shaking off his bat partner. Zubat screeched in irritation as took to the skies again. He swooped down and struck Koffing across the face with his wing.

"You think getting a rock thrown in your mouth is bad?" Zubat seethed, "You try getting crushed against a wall and then having someone explode in your face!"

"I said I was sorry, Zubat..." Koffing mumbled as he felt the stinging welt on his cheek, "I couldn't help it, I was holding back so much gas that it was going to blow either way..."

"Keeeh!" Zubat slapped Koffing's other cheek, "Then you should've stopped holding it in!" Koffing opened his mouth to retort, but Zubat quickly interrupted him, "Feh, it doesn't matter now anyway! What we should be focusing on now is getting our revenge!"

He quickly flapped toward the direction of the town, where Fée and Blue had disappeared to. Turning around, the little bat Pokémon hastily threw Koffing a gesture to follow him before zipping off into the town; leaving Koffing all alone by the creepy bakery.

"H – hold on Zubat, I can't fly as fast as you!"

* * *

"Let's see... for us to leave town proper, we first need to present the guard with our Explorer's Badges. That'll let him know that we're official explorers – well, explorer apprentices anyway – out on an expedition. Also, it'll let him know which guild we're affiliated to."

"Mmhm..."

"Then, as we return back to town after we're done with our adventure; we need to show the guard our badges again and declare any treasure we might find while outside of town. Just to show him that we're not bringing anything dangerous into the town."

"Mmhm... "

While we were making our way through the streets of Treasure Town, I decided to try and educate Blue a little on a few rules and regulations that explorers have to abide by. Although he didn't seem like he was fully understanding some of the concepts, I could tell that he was at least listening intently to my lectures.

"So then..." Blue mumbled as he rubbed his chin, "assuming we did get a ton of treasure while out of town, do we have to give it to the guard?"

I shook my head, "No, we just have to tell him what we got. As long as he doesn't deem our haul as dangerous, we're free to bring it back into town and keep it for ourselves."

"This place is called Treasure Town, after all," I said in a happy voice as I smiled at Blue, "it would be strange if they didn't let us keep the treasure we find."

Blue let out a bark – like laugh and said, "Well, I suppose you have a point there!" He grinned as he fluffed the fur on my head. I blushed and shook my head, trying to get the messed – up fur back in place. When I looked back at Blue, I noticed that he had already moved several paces ahead of me. Feeling a little panicked, I quickly ran back to his side.

As we walked, Blue had pulled open the little bag of pastries that Duskull had given us. He reached inside and pulled out one of the little biscuits that the old Pokémon had just finished baking. He gave it a thoughtful look for a moment before popping the whole thing into his mouth.

"You know– mmf – that Duskull guy – mmf..." He said as he chewed the biscuit. I shook my head and pointed my paw at my mouth, telling him to finish eating before speaking. Blue seemed to get the hint, as he paused his speech to finish chewing his snack. He gulped it down and took a deep breath.

"As I was saying," Blue continued on, totally unperturbed, "I was wondering just how much that Duskull guy knows about the Panacea."

"What do you mean?"

Blue pulled out another biscuit from the sack and said, "Well Fée,didn't it look like to you that he wasn't telling us the whole story?" He offered me the biscuit. I shook my head and refused him by pushing it away with my paw.

"Well... he did seem a little cautious about telling us everything about the medicine," I said, thinking back to our conversation with the old Pokémon, "but I'm sure he had a reason to keep some details from us."

"I'm curious as to how he – and the Guildmaster – knew about this supposedly rare and amazing medicine in the first place," Blue remarked as he took a bite out of the biscuit, "it sounds a little fishy, don't you think?"

"I'm sure there's a story behind that," I replied, shaking my head, "but it's not our problem to stick our noses into." I patted Blue's leg and looked up at him, "We should be thankful that they're even telling us about the Panacea for you, Blue."

"Hmm..." Blue placed the biscuit in his mouth and held onto it with his teeth, "Mmf... I guess you're right," he flicked his muzzle up and threw the biscuit into the air, "I suppose there's no real reason for me to be suspicious of them when they're helping me."

He caught the falling biscuit in his mouth and bit off another large piece out of it. He grinned at me with crumbs plastered all over his muzzle. "I'll have to remember to thank Duskull the next time we visit him."

I giggled as I brushed the biscuit fragments off his fur, "Really though, I wasn't expecting Duskull to be a such a nice Pokémon." Dusting the crumbs off my paws; I closed my eyes and thought back to the spooky house, "His bakery looked so scary on the outside, but it was so nice and cozy on the inside."

"I guess you really can't judge a book by it's cov –oof!"

My thoughts were interrupted as I accidentally collided into soft something in front of me. My eyes flew open as I was thrown backward, and down onto the ground. The consequences of walking with my eyes closed, ouch! Worried about what I might've hit, I shook the dust from my face and scrambled back onto my feet.

"I'm so sorry!" I opened my eyes and apologized at whoever it was, "Are you alri...?"

I found my thoughts trailing off as I saw the Pokémon. It was as if I was looking into a mirror, a very pink – tinted mirror. The Pokémon pulled himself off the ground with grace and dusted the dirt off its brilliant white fur before turning and looking at me with its shining blue eyes.

"My, my... I believe that is what I should be asking," To my great surprise, the Pokémon spoke in a deep, male voice. He sauntered up to me and held out a pink – furred paw and asked, "are you alright, darling?"

"D – darling?" I was taken aback by his words. A blush was crawling onto my face as I slowly backed away from the pink stranger. "N – no, I'm alright. I didn't get hurt."

"I see, that's quite a relief." He said with a deep sigh while smiling at me.

Despite his manly voice, the Pokémon had a very feminine look overall. He had a very handsome face, with two large baby – blue eyes. His entire body was covered in soft, white – colored fur; while his ears, paw – tips and tail were a very cutesy shade of pink. A small, pretty pink ribbon was tied onto his left ear, while a slightly larger ribbon shaped like a bow tie was present on his chest. The two ribbons had long tails that trailed out from behind him, mysteriously hovering around the Pokémon's body like long, cottony feelers. He was also slightly larger than I was, and his fur was much less much poofy and better groomed than mine. Despite our myriad of differences though, I couldn't help but feel a strange sense of familiarity between us.

"Who are you?" Blue folded his arms and asked the pink Pokémon.

"My, where are my manners?" He chuckled in his deep voice and sat down on the ground. He straightened the large, bow tie – like ribbon with his front paws and said, "Many call me Sylveon, but as a special treat for you two..." He held his paw over his chest and bowed low, "you may call me Barie instead."

"Sylveon?" I tilted my head to the side in confusion. I had never heard of a Pokémon by that name before.

"That's correct, my little Eevee," he said, beaming at my bewildered look, "I take it the two of you aren't from Unity City?"

Blue and I both shook our heads. Barie covered his mouth with his paw and chuckled.

"My, that makes sense then," he held his paw over his bow tie again and smiled at me, "I suppose Sylveon aren't very common around this part of the world, hm?"

"No," I shook my head and spoke in an honest voice, "it's my first time seeing a Sylveon like you, Barie."

"Well then, I'm quite honored to be... your first," suddenly, the gentlemanly Pokémon gave me a little wink. Feeling my blush intensify, I instinctively ducked behind Blue and and tried to hide my reddening face behind his tail. I could hear Barie chuckling at my embarrassment, "my, my... you're quite charming little thing, darling."

"Mmh...!" With every word he spoke, I could feel strange, unfamiliar emotions being conjured up within me. I've never quite met a Pokémon who acted like this before, and it was making me feel incredibly awkward inside.

"You know," I heard Blue speak in a curious voice as I stuffed my red face into his tail for the third time today, "you kinda resemble Fée a bit. Are you two related?"

"Well, aren't you a handsome one?" Barie said in a surprised voice, "I'll admit, I've never actually spoken to a Riolu face to face before. You're giving me quite a different impression than I would've expected."

"What do you mean by that?" Blue retorted.

"No, I apologize. I didn't mean sound rude." He paused for a moment. I assumed that he might've been bowing to Blue, "It's just that... I've heard so much about Riolu in my line of work that it might've colored my expectations just a tad."

I felt Blue's shoulders go up as he shrugged, "Well, it's not the first time I heard someone say something like that to me."

"Still, I apologize." Barie insisted.

"Forget it, I don't really care either way."

"My, my... you're an interesting one," Barie spoke in an odd, low voice, "I think I would like to get to know you better sometime, Riolu..."

Their conversation was becoming strangely suspicious to me. With my curiosity piqued, I detached myself from Blue's tail and peered out at the two of them. I inhaled sharply at what I saw. Barie had closed in on Blue sometime during their conversation, and was caressing my friend's cheek with his feelers in a suspiciously intimate manner.

"H – hold on..!" for some reason, I found myself shouting at the two of them. Barie and Blue looked surprised at my sudden interruption. The pink Pokémon recovered first and smiled at me. He shook his head as he closed his eyes, while Blue didn't seem like he really cared about what the pink Sylveon was doing.

"I'm afraid I might've made your friend a little uncomfortable," Barie withdrew his feeler from Blue's face and backed away a few paces from him, "my apologies, darling."

"P – please don't call me that..." I mumbled, shaking my head that word.

To my great relief, the pink Pokémon nodded. He gave me another wink and said, "Alright, if it really makes you that uncomfortable, then I'll refrain from calling you darling." He held out his paw to me in a friendly gesture, "Would you mind giving me your name then, cutie?"

"...just call me Fée, thank you."

"Fée... Fée..." He closed his eyes and repeated my name twice, "what an adorable name. It fits you quite well, cutie."

...I really can't handle Pokémon like this. I sighed in resignation as the Sylveon chuckled happily in front of me.

"So then, do you have a name for me as well, handsome?" He said as he pointed a questioning paw at Blue.

"You can just call me Blue," he replied simply.

Barie tilted his head to the side, making his ribbons flop down on the right side of his head. He glanced at Blue with a puzzled look on his face before saying, "'Blue...?' That's a very... unique name."

"So I've heard."

Barie straightened his head again and rubbed his muzzle with his ribbons. After a moment of silent thought, he shrugged and let it go. Smiling again, he pulled on his bow tie with his paws and said, "Well, it's not my place to criticize your names. It's nice to meet you Fée, Blue."

The pink Pokémon extended two of his feelers out to Blue and I, as if asking for a handshake. I glanced over to Blue, who stared curiously at the feelers for a moment before shrugging and grasping it with his paws. The feeler in front of me twitched up a bit, as if asking for my paw as well. Sighing, I let go of my reservations and held up my paw as well.

As soon as his soft ribbons touched me, I felt another of that odd, familiar feeling wash over me. My eyes widened as I felt his feelers wrap around my paw. It was almost as though I've felt something similar back in the past. But, as I tried to remember where I might've felt this before, nothing came up in my memory. I stared at the Sylveon sitting in front of me with a bewildered look on my face.

Have I met this Pokémon before? As far as I can tell, the answer was no. I can't recall a single instance in my memory where I might've met someone like Barie before. So then, what is this strange deja vu feeling rumbling around inside of me?

"Oh, by the way," I was snapped out of my reverie by Barie's deep voice. He pulled his ribbons away from our paws, and in turn, he pulled away that odd familiar feeling from me as well. He straightened the bow tie on his chest and said in a prideful voice, "to answer your question earlier, Blue. It doesn't surprise me that you consider Fée and I similar in some way."

"Why is that?" I asked, a little curious myself.

"That's simple, my dear Fée," he grinned as held up one of his paws and placed it against my ruff, "it's because I was once an Eevee as well. Just as you are now."


	19. Don't you recognize me?

**• ****  
Chapter 18:**

**"Don't you recognize me?"**

"W – what did you say?"

I glanced down at Barie's pink paw on my ruff. Then, I looked back up at his handsome face with wide, astonished eyes. He smiled at me in a charming, almost suave manner as he turned his paw upside down. His paw moved up from my ruff and reached the bottom of my face. He proceeded to caress my chin in a gentle manner.

"My, you look positively charming when you're confused," he gave me a small wink as he chuckled. All of a sudden, his paw dropped from my chin down to my legs. He picked up one of my front paws and held it up to his face.

"How about I give you a first hand demonstration of what a Sylveon can do?"

Before I could even react; he leaned his head down and pressed his mouth down on my paw in a smooth, quick motion.

"E – eeeeeh?!" My eyes widened into the size of dinner plates when I felt him kiss my paw. I tried to shake his face off my fur, but as I tried to move my paw. I discovered that, all of a sudden, I somehow couldn't move. An electrifying sensation exploded out from where he kissed me, and caused every single strand of hair on my body to stand up like pine needles.

He raised his head up from my paw and gazed right into my eyes. He put his paw on the front of my ruff, making me I stare into his eyes. As I looked into his beautiful, baby blue eyes, the world around us wavered and melted away. The colors of the sky, buildings and ground melded together into a pastel – like mixture of colors. Eventually, the only thing I could see clearly in this painterly world was Barie's handsome face.

Our faces were so close that I could feel his warm breath against me. A part of my brain told me to shove him away, to stop him from getting any closer. But I detected an unnatural, sweet – smelling fragrance emanating from his mouth. The strange aroma he was giving off was so... so intoxicating that it blanked out my mind as soon as I took a single whiff. Although I wasn't quite sure what it was, his scent had reminded me of something familiar and comforting...

"H – hold on..." I was shocked at how weak my voice sounded. In my desperation to regain control, I grasped the paw he had on my chest. But, it was a futile effort. Barie just reversed our paws, making it so that he was the one holding onto my paws instead. I could feel his soft, silky fur press against my coarse, brown fur. Somehow, just the presence of his paw on mine seemed to intensify the intoxicating scent coming from him. I felt my breathing become ragged and uncontrolled as his smiling mouth neared my own.

One of his soft, pink feelers moved up to my face and, with a gentle touch, brushed my eyes closed. Then, I felt the feeler curl around and press itself against the back of my head. It began to inch my face closer and closer to his, enveloping me further within his fragrant aura. For some odd reason, I could feel the feeler emanating a familiar warmth. It was the same warmth that I felt... when Blue put my ribbon on my ear...

_Wham!_

Then, all of a sudden, the fragrant scent and the warm mood surrounding us vanished. I stood there in a daze; my eyes blinking rapidly as my mind scrambled around to try and make sense of what just happened.

_Thump!_

My head sluggishly moved over to where the sound came from. In my blurred vision, the world was still colored in pastels. I could just barely make out a tall, blue smudge wobbling around me. In the distance, I saw Barie lying on the dirt several feet away.

An urgent sense of worry overcame me. Why was he on the ground? Did he get hurt? Who hurt him? With all these questions wimming around in my mind, I took a step toward Barie, my paws already reaching toward my Explorer's Pack. However, the large blue smudge from before suddenly barred my way and tightly grasped onto my shoulders, preventing me from moving. It shook me around like a rag doll, making my head bob up and down in my daze.

"Wake up!"

Who's voice was that? I can't seem to recall who it was. But it sure sounded familiar, somehow. From behind the blue smudge, I could just barely see Barie twitching in the dirt. I need to go help him. I can't just leave him there on the ground like that. This stupid blue smudge needs to get out of the way.

"Fée! It's me, Blue! Don't you recognize me?"

The smudge was talking to me again, but I ignored it. I needed to go and get Barie back up on his feet. Maybe he'll reward me if I go assist him. I think I'd like that...

"Ouch! What the heck are you doing?"

Anger filled me as I tried to bash away the smudge with my head. I headbutted it as hard as I could, wanting to knock it down and get it out of my way. After all, I needed to go help Barie!

"Ugh... I'm sorry about this, Fée..."

_Thwap!_

All of a sudden, stars exploded in my eyes as a sharp blow struck the top of my head. I cried out in shock at the rising pain in my head. Crouching down onto the ground, I clutched the top of my head with my paws as tears welled up in my eyes.

"Are you back to normal now? Sorry if it hurt, I tried to hold back as much as I could."

"Heeh...?" Blinking away my tears, the pastel – filled world around me was beginning to vanish. Buildings and roads slowly rematerialized from their former, blurry selves. And the blue splotch that was in front of me...

"B – Blue...?" I coughed as I saw my friend's face in front of me. His outline was still blurry and unfocused, but at least I could tell that it was Blue, rather than an unfocused smudge. I reached up with my paw and touched his chest to make sure that he was actually there. When I did so, I heard him release a deep sigh.

"Whew," he threw his arm around me and pulled me into a hug, "you're back to normal."

"Back... to normal...?" I muttered, still feeling dazed and confused, "What... what happened to me?"

Blue let go of me and placed a paw against my forehead, "You sorta... went a little strange when that guy touched you earlier."

"Strange...? How...?"

"He wrapped his ribbon... things around your head, and then you kinda just fell silent. Then, your face went really red," Blue jabbed a paw at the mound of pink fur on the ground ahead of us, "you weren't acting like yourself at all."

"Eh?" I stared at the fallen Sylveon with confusion written all over my face. I patted my face, and sure enough, Blue was right. It was sizzling red and hot. At first, I wondered why I was blushing so hard, but then; as my dulled mind began to slowly wake up, my bewilderment gradually transformed into horror. I sat down and clasped my paws over my mouth as I began to recall exactly what had happened just a few seconds prior.

"No!" I cried out in a horrified panic. I understood completely as to why my face was redder than a Tamato Berry. Had a few more seconds passed before Blue interrupted us, I might've... I might've...!

I glanced down at my paws. Even now, I could still faintly detect his scent lingering on my fur. Disgusted, at myself and at him, I dropped my paws onto the dirt and tried to scrub the scent away as hard as I can.

In the distance, I heard Barie groaning in pain as he recovered from being sent through the air by Blue. He looked stunned as he stumbled around, trying to regain his balance. His immaculate fur was now mussed up with brown dirt, and his ribbons were all jumbled up and tangled around his legs in a mess. Seeing him in such a disarray made me feel a little pity for him, but my sympathy quickly vanished when I remembered what he almost did to me.

"My, my..." he said as he delicately brushed the dirt off his pure white fur with his ribbons, "this is the first time I've ever had a man punch me in the face like that."

_Crack_.

Suddenly, a sharp noise rang out from beside me. I looked up and saw Blue cracking his knuckles with a scary look on his face.

"I wouldn't mind giving you another one," Blue cracked his knuckles one more time and folded his arms, his burning red eyes practically firing daggers at the dapper Sylveon smiling at us in the distance. He took a heavy step forward. His presence was so menacing that it was actually making me feel a little scared as well. Nervously, I glanced over to Barie to see what kind of expression he had on his face.

"Now that was a superb blow..." amazingly, Barie still had his suave smile plastered on his face. He returned Blue's glare with a casual smile. He raised up one of his paws to his face and rubbed the red mark that Blue had left on his cheek, "My, did I accidentally trod on one of your paws, Blue? I didn't imagine that you'd get so angry over a little tease like that."

"What the heck did you do to Fée?" Blue shouted. He pointed a paw at the pink Pokémon and stated, "You're another one of those Pokémon that can use psychic powers, aren't you?"

"Psychic powers...?" Barie looked a little confused at Blue's sudden accusation. He held up one of his ribbons and examined it with his paw before shaking his head at us, "I believe you're mistaken, my overprotective friend." He let his ribbon fall from his paw, where it then curled itself around his neck. He smiled at Blue and gave a small bow, "All I did was show her the powers of a Sylveon."

Blue had a skeptical look on his face, "What do you mean by that?"

Barie took hold of his bow tie with his paws and straightened it out, "As I've said before, my dear Blue; I am a Sylveon." He gestured to his head with the end of one of his ribbons and smiled, "As a Sylveon, I do not have the capability to harness any sort of psychic ability. Now, if I was an Espeon instead..."

Suddenly, he paused in the middle of his words. The savvy smile on his face slipped slightly while the ribbon beside his face appeared to wilt a little. He looked away from us for a moment and held his paw up to his mouth. An aura of confusion washed over Blue and I as we stood there, wondering what he was doing.

He must've noticed our questioning gaze as he quickly coughed and turned his head back to face us, his suave smile back on his face as if nothing had happened. Straightening out his bow tie again, he held his paw up and said in a cheerful tone, "If I was an Espeon, then I probably be just as attractive as I am now."

I narrowed my eyes at the chuckling Sylveon. Something felt off with his last statement, although I couldn't quite put my paw on it.

"Then..." I clasped my paw over my mouth and blushed, "what you did to me earlier..."

Barie shook his head and winked at me, "There's no need to worry, Fée. I wouldn't have gone any further than just a little tease." He gazed at me with a sly expression on his face and held one of his ribbons up to his mouth, hiding his smile, "However... if you wanted a little more, then I wouldn't mind showing you the full extent of a Sylveon's powers..."

"N – no!" I ducked behind Blue and covered my face, "I – I'm not interested! No!"

"What a shame," Barie dropped his ribbon and shook his head, "but I can understand why." He sighed as his eyes drifted over to Blue, "I suppose I've been... ah... late to the party." The Sylveon chuckled in an enigmatic manner, making Blue and I glance at each other with questioning looks on our faces.

"Nevertheless," The Sylveon placed his paw on his chest and bowed his head with his eyes closed, "I am sorry for what I did, truly, I am." He turned his head up and looked at me. His suave smile was gone, and in its place was a small frown, "It was not my intention to make you feel uncomfortable, Fée. Believe me when I say that all I was planning to do was tease you and your friend."

The Sylveon held up one of his paws with his head leaned down. It was a sincere apologetic gesture. I gave Blue a nervous glance as I wondered what I should do. Even though what he did to me was fairly... shameful, it wasn't anything too bad or injurious. In the end, it was Blue who interrupted it. So we never would've of known just how far he would've taken that... tease.

"I... I forgive you," I spoke with a sigh as I placed my paw on his. Although I still wasn't exactly sure as to what the right answer was, I figured that there was no reason as to why I should continue holding onto a grudge. Despite his... forwardness, Barie really did seem like he was sincerely sorry about his actions.

"Thank you, Fée," the smile on the Sylveon's face returned. It wasn't his previous, super – suave smile, but rather, it was more like a smile between friends. In fact, his current smile seemed to have made him look a little bit more handsome than before. I quickly turned my head away from the pink Pokémon, feeling a blush rising up in my face again.

"Don't be mistaken. I'm still keeping my eyes on you," I saw Blue take Barie's paw after mine. He still had a serious expression on his face, "if I ever see you hurt Fée again, then you're going to face my wrath."

Barie shook his head as he withdrew his paw from Blue's grasp, "I would never think of hurting a woman, much less a friend." The Sylveon sat down and straightened out his bow tie, "But... I am quite jealous of the two of you."

"Jealous?" I echoed in a puzzled voice.

He held one of his ribbons up to his mouth. From behind the strip of pink, I could see his former sly smile returning to his face as he tried to hide it. The Sylveon chuckled deeply as his gaze flitted between Blue and I; his eyes carrying an uncomfortable knowing gaze behind the blue.

"It's nothing," he said in a muffled voice behind his ribbon, "don't worry about it."

The Sylveon began to chuckle to himself once more while Blue and I looked on in confusion.

* * *

"You said you were once an Eevee before, right?"

It was a few minutes after the whole fiasco with Barie had passed. Blue and I had resumed our trek toward the Main Plaza, but this time, the Sylveon had decided to tag along with us; citing that his destination was in the same direction as well.

"Indeed I was," Barie spoke with a prideful voice, "I fondly remember the days where I had a nice, bushy ruff around my neck, just like yours." He closed his eyes as he used his ribbons to brush his thin, soft fur, "I used to spend ages every day cleaning and grooming it. Could you imagine my horror when I finally evolved and discovered it missing around my neck?"

Feeling self – conscious, I looked down at my fluffy ruff. Despite my best attempts to clean myself after my adventure with Blue in the Beach Cave, I could still feel several grains of sand and chunks of dirt buried deep inside my thick fur. Not to mention, large portions of my fur were still matted and stuck together thanks to all the seawater I was splashed with.

"If you would like," I jumped up with a start when I heard Barie speak again. He was watching me examine my messy ruff with an amused look in his eye, "I wouldn't mind helping you clean your fur. I am quite confident in my grooming skills."

With his ribbons, he directed my eye toward his own pristine coat of white and pink. I couldn't help but feel jealous over just how pretty his fur was. Despite how he was slammed into the dirt earlier by one of Blue's punches, he still looked very clean and well – kept.

"It... it's fine," I quickly shook my head as I rejected the handsome Sylveon's offer, "I'm an explorer... I'm supposed to get dirty."

"Ah well," Barie shrugged, "the offer's still on the table if you ever want to reconsider." He glanced over to Blue with a sly smile on his face, "Who knows? You might even be able to impress a certain someone with a new look..."

"It's fine!" I shouted again, realizing what he was implying, "I don't need any grooming!"

"Alright, alright. There's no need to shout." Barie said with an amused chuckle as I grumbled in frustration. It was bad enough that Blue would tease me when we're alone, but now there's someone else as well. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Barie give me a sly, knowing look. This guy... he's so annoying! Puffing my cheeks out, I turned away from Barie in a huff.

"So, am I correct in assuming that the both of you are explorers?" He asked, "It's what you said earlier, but just so we're on the same page here..."

"That's right," Blue answered for me, "Fée and I both became explorers just this morning."

"My, that's quite an impressive feat!" Barie spoke with an admiring tone, "Back in Unity City, we rarely have explorers quite as young as the two of you."

"Wait, you're from Unity City?" My curiosity was piqued. I rarely, if ever, hear anything about other towns or cities outside of Treasure Town. My previous annoyance was quickly doused by my rising eagerness to hear more, "Does that mean you moved here with the crowd yesterday?"

"That's correct," Barie said with a nod, "it was quite a mess, to say the least." One of his ribbons fluttered around him and began to dust off his fur, "Dust, dirt and sand were flying everywhere. I must've carried an entire pound of grime on me by the time we were allowed past the gates."

"Why did you decide to come to Treasure Town?" I asked, ignoring his grumbling, "I mean, isn't Unity City this big, fancy city filled with all kinds of Pokémon? I heard that the place is massive – like almost twice the size of Treasure Town," I turned to Blue and made a wide gesture with my paws, "and I also heard that the buildings in the city are made of strong stone and tough metal! And they're like giant towers that stretch all the way up into the sky!"

Blue didn't reply, but he did chuckle at my enthusiasm. Undeterred, I continued to describe to describe to him the things I knew about the city.

"I once overheard some Pokémon talking about how if you stand at the top of the tallest building in Unity City, you can even touch the stars with your own paws!" I glanced up into the skies and reached up my right paw, "That's incredible, don't you think?"

"Touching the stars... huh?" Blue mimicked my action and reached up with his own paw, "That does sound rather amazing. I'd like to try that someday."

Happy that Blue also shared my desire, I circled around him and gave him a bright smile, "Me too!"

I looked over to Barie to see if he agreed with what I said as well. To my confusion, he wasn't looking at us. Instead, he seemed to be interested in his paws all of a sudden, and his mouth was covered by one of his ribbons.

"I suppose it's good to dream big..." I heard him mutter under his breath as we continued to walk together. He shook his head and dropped his ribbon from his face, revealing a small, strained – looking smile.

"What do you mean by that?" I was a little surprised at how depressed he sounded. Tilting my head in confusion, I stared at the Sylveon with questioning eyes, "Am I wrong?"

"No... you're more or less correct," replied Barie as he turned to look at me, "Unity City does have a lot of... good sights, I suppose. It's just a little interesting to me to hear what others think about the place."

He let out another sigh and sped up his pace, leaving Blue and I behind in an aura of bewilderment. We glanced at each other, both of us were wearing the same confused expression on our faces. Just what did Barie mean by that?

"Wait!" I shouted as I ran after the Sylveon. I reached the pink Pokémon's side and panted out a question, "C – can you tell us what you know of Unity City, Barie? I'm curious!"

Barie stopped and looked at me. One of his ribbons swirled up beside me and laid itself on top of my head. With a smile on his face, Barie shook his head.

"My... I think I'd rather not have someone as innocent as you hear about the place from a jaded old Pokémon like me," said Barie in an encouraging voice, "you are an explorer, right?"

"Y – yeah..."

"Then you should find out on your own. Form your own opinion with your own eyes." He grinned and patted me on the head with his ribbon.

Although I felt a little disappointed, I could understand the meaning behind his words. Barie chuckled and curled the ribbon around one of my ears. With a quick tug, he pulled my head in close to his again. He leaned his muzzle near and whispered into my ear.

"Though Fée..." He spoke in a deep, sensual voice as he held one of his paws underneath my chin, "...I wouldn't mind telling you everything about myself... in private, that is..."

Feeling the temperature rise up in my face again, I quickly leapt away from the seductive Sylveon. The ribbon he had around my ear unraveled and snapped back to him, as if it was a spring coil.

"No way!" I seethed, annoyed that I fell for another one of his 'teases." Frustrated and angry, I turned away from Barie and walked back to Blue's side, but not before sticking my tongue out at him and spouting, "Jeez, I never should've asked you anything!"

"My, my," Barie chuckled as he curled his ribbon back around his own ear with his paw, "I just adore teasing you, Fée. You're so much fun to play around, unlike the Pokémon back at the city."

He threw his head up into the air and breathed deeply. With a chuckle, he held out one of his ribbons toward Blue and I and gave us a wink.

"Well, It's been fun being around the two of you," he held his paw over his bow tie and bowed, "but, I'm sorry to say that I must be leaving now."

"Hold on, you're going?" I stopped and turned around at the Sylveon, "Why?"

Barie chuckled and held up his right paw into the air, "I have somewhere I must be. It's actually quite important." He shook his head and smiled, "I was supposed to be there about a few hours ago. But, I consider meeting new friends to be much more important than something like that."

"I see..." I said in a quiet voice. Despite how much I disliked his teasing, I couldn't help but feel a little sad at the prospect of a friend leaving. Even Blue, for all his anger at Barie earlier, looked a little disappointed.

"But don't worry," Barie said as he walked up to Blue and I, "I'm quite sure we'll meet each other again another day." He held out a paw and winked at Blue, "After all, I'm sure you're anxious to give me another punch, right?"

"Heh..." Blue grinned as he grasped Barie's paw firmly, "only if you manage to seriously anger me again."

"My, my... that's something I'll have to remember to avoid," Barie returned Blue's grin as the two of them shook their paws.

Barie let go of Blue's paw and sauntered over to me. He held up his paw in front of me, asking for a handshake as well. At first, I was a little hesitant. What if this was another one of his tricks to embarrass me?

"There's no need to be afraid, Fée," he said with a knowing smile, "I've had my fill of fun for today. Let's have an amicable farewell between friends, alright?"

"...alright," sighing a little, I decided to let bygones be bygones and forgive him. I placed my paw on top of his and gave him a smile. "Goodbye, Barie."

"My, what a lovely smile." Barie said, making me blush once more. He let go of my paw and stepped back a few paces, but not before pausing and giving us a bow, "Goodbye Fée, and you too as well, Blue."

"This isn't goodbye," Blue remarked as he folded his arms in front of his chest "we'll meet again, like you said."

"Of course." The Sylveon gave the two of us a bright, shining smile before he turned around. He held up one of his ribbons as he spoke his final goodbye.

"I'll be looking forward to seeing the two of you again in the future."

* * *

After we parted ways with our new friend, Blue and I eventually made our way back to the Main Plaza. The morning had given way to noontime, and as a result, the sun was now hanging right over the town. Strange, just a few weeks ago, the days were cool and balmy, and now everything feels searing hot.

"Whew..." I heard Blue take a deep breath as he leaned against the stone walls of the fountain, hiding himself within the shadow. Taking my place beside the Riolu, we both sat down together and let the ambient mist from the water cool us down. Blue reached beside him and withdrew the packet of Pecha Berries from his Explorer's Pack. He broke the small, pink berry into two pieces.

"Take a bite, Fée," he said as he offered me a half of the juicy berry, "it's sweet and minty. It'll cool down your mouth."

"Thanks, Blue," I smiled as I accepted the Pecha half from my friend. Taking a dainty bite out of the berry, I let the sweet juice wash over my tongue and dribble down my throat. He was right, the berry was pretty minty. I opened my mouth and took a deep breath.

"Eep!" The sudden rush of air made me feel as though I just swallowed a ball of snow. I quickly clamped my lips shut and waited for the pain to recede from my teeth.

"Feels good, doesn't it?" Blue snickered as he swallowed his half of the berry in one gulp. He showed me his pink – stained teeth as he smiled at me. I gave him a playful shove in response.

"Hehe..." Giggling at his antics, I leaned my head back against the wall and let my aching teeth recover. I stared into the sky. The sun was still shining bright, but it looks like a few clouds were inching their way over to block the searing hot rays. I turned over and poked Blue in the arm to grab his attention.

"Blue, let's get moving once the shade sets in," I pointed at the meandering clouds up in the sky, "once we're out of town, we can check out that letter Duskull gave us."

"Sounds like a good plan," Blue put his arms behind his head and scooted further into the shade, "I wonder why it's so hot all of a sudden. It wasn't this bad yesterday."

"Well, I guess Summer finally arrived," I replied while making sure Duskull's letter was still in my pack, "I'm honestly a little surprised that it took this long for the air to heat up, since Spring has been over for a while ago." I grinned at Blue and joked, "Maybe the Summer is trying to make up for lost time by suddenly turning up the heat like this."

"Summer... huh?" Blue mumbled as he leaned back with with his eyes closed, "I think I like the heat. It's a lot better than being freezing cold all the time."

"All the time? What do you mean by that?"

Blue yawned and fell silent. Leaning in close to his face, I picked up the faint sound of him snoring. I stared at him, stunned. I picked up one of his paws and wiggled it about. Did he really just fall asleep, just like that?

Sighing, I dropped his paw and shook my head. Well, at least if I wanted to wake him up, there was a whole fountain full of water behind us...

* * *

Darkness filled Blue's vision as he opened his eyes. Once more, he found himself lying down in the middle of the snowy abyss. Like before, he could see nothing in the distance but inky, black darkness. The ground was still covered in a thick layer of snow, and the sky was filled with an innumerable amount of immobile snowflakes.

"Here again, huh?" Blue sighed as he shoved himself off the powdery snow. He felt his head bump against several snowflakes as he stood up, shattering the fragile little things into millions of sparkling fragments. He dusted the chilly, white particles of snow off his fur as he scanned his surroundings.

Nothing had changed. The road of snow stretching out into oblivion, the frozen flakes hanging in the air, the piles of undisturbed snow that straddled the side of the road... Everything was just as it was before.

Blue brushed aside a curtain of snowflakes in front of him as he walked down the snowy path. He didn't know where the path would lead him, but he knew that as long as he followed this road, _that thing_ will appear. He felt his blood begin to boil as he thought about his last encounter with that mysterious creature.

There wasn't anything he could've done against that monster. Blue recalled how the creature managed to throw him around like a ragdoll made of straw by just roaring at him. He remembered how his one, and only attempt at fighting back resulted in his arm nearly being absorbed into the beast's carapace.

Blue clenched his fist in anger. If he met the creature again, what could he do differently this time? It was a monster with overwhelming power and presence. Furthermore, it was a beast that he couldn't even find a way to fight back against. Was the thing even a Pokémon? What could he do? What can he do?

He stared down at his shaking fist. If his punches were worthless, then he would have to find a different way to fight. Blue dropped his arm and looked around him for something that could help him. A weapon, a tool, anything would do. To his frustration, all he could find around him were piles and piles of snow and glittering snowflakes.

Blue slammed his paw into the freezing snow, irritated at its lack of use. As he withdrew his paw, he noticed that some of the snowy powder clung to his fur. An idea surfaced in his mind as he examined the white particles on his paw. Bending down, Blue began to scoop up the snow beside the road. With great care, he packed the loose snow into a tight, icy ball.

Holding up his creation to the sky, Blue weighed the snowball in his paw, judging its density and weight. Feeling that the ball was a tad too light, he packed a few more layers of snow over it until it felt just right in his paw. He tossed it up into the air and watched it shatter several snowflakes before returning to his grasp.

Would such a thing even work on a massive creature like that? Blue considered the possibility of making more snowballs until he had a decent stock of them to pelt at the beast. But, as he continued to mull over his plan, he felt the ball begin to dribble cold water down his fur. Blue sighed as he let the snowball slip off his paw. It hit the ground with a wet splat as it exploded into chunks of wet snow.

If his fists couldn't harm the beast, what use would a little ball of packed ice and snow do against it? He would have better luck trying to blow wind at the creature's feet with his mouth. Resigning to the fact that there was probably nothing he could do with the snow, Blue left his melting creation behind as he resumed his walk down the lonely road.

As he trudged toward his inevitable fate, Blue took his time to take in the sights around him. Or rather, the lack of sights. Although he had been here before, he never really took the time to wonder what this world was. Who created this lonely world of ice and darkness? Why was he here? What was that creature that brutalized him?

The more questions he created, the more irritated he became. He wanted answers. He didn't want to just walk down this road while juggling multiple unknowns inside his mind. But, there was simply no one else around to tell him anything. He was all alone in this empty, desolate world.

Every once in a while, Blue felt a strange, nagging sensation at the back of his mind. It felt as though something was trying to get out. With every step he took, the nagging feeling would intensify slightly, giving him a slight migraine. Eventually, the migraine transformed into a full – on headache. Blue grimaced as he clutched the side of his head. He was getting tired of this feeling.

Eventually, Blue saw a familiar mound of black looming in the distance. Taking a deep breath, Blue let go of his head and prepared himself for another round with the creature. The pounding inside his head had intensified to such a degree that he could barely stand the noise emanating from inside his skull. But, he had no choice to endure the pain.

After all, the creature had noticed him.

The beast reared its head back and unleashed its terrifying roar. The force of the roar was like a tidal wave plowing through the air, upending the snow on the ground while shattering every snowflake in its destructive wake. The creature glared at the now – kneeling Riolu with its glowing eyes. Not a single scrap of mercy would be given here.

Blue forced a confident smirk onto his face as he struggled to get back on his feet. The sheer volume of the roar sent the pounding inside his head into overdrive. Thousands, perhaps millions of drums were now present inside his mind, all beating at full force. His eyesight was fading, his breath was labored, and his muscles were creaking in pain as he strained himself to hold a fighting pose.

"Come on... you beast..." Blue gasped as he watched the creature stalk toward him, its eyes glinting like stars in the darkness. He held up his right paw and clenched it into a fist, "I'm... I'm ready for you this time..."

Within seconds, the beast had reached Blue. It towered over the Riolu like a great monolith. Its black carapace gleamed in the darkness, illuminated by the dim light emanating from its eyes. Blue could see his own exhausted face reflected in the beast's body, like a disturbing, full – body mirror.

"What...?"

But, what he saw wasn't what he expected. He had seen his own body before. He was short, blue and fuzzy. The reflection wasn't. He had small arms, small legs, and a childish face. The reflection didn't. The only thing he and his reflection had in common, was the fact that they both had burning red eyes.

Temporarily forgetting the dangerous situation he was in, Blue reached up with his paw and touched the side of his face. His reflection mimicked his motion and also touched its face. He moved his paw over to his muzzle, which his reflection gladly did as well. It was unmistakeable. The reflection was his.

It was his reflection, and yet, it was not.

But, he recognized the mysterious individual inside the mirror. Even in his state of amnesia, he knew who that was. He reached toward his reflection with his paw, and his double did the same. A familiar dragging sensation overwhelmed Blue when his paw came in contact with the beast's carapace. It was as if he had stuck his arm into a pit of sludge. Eventually, his arm vanished into the mirror, all the way up to his shoulder.

From the other side of the mirror, Blue could see his double smirking. Strange, was he smirking as well? Even stranger was the fact that his reflection was no longer reflecting his actions. It was standing in the center of the mirrored world, staring at Blue with a strange smile on its face. Then, all of a sudden, it held up its own right arm and presented it to Blue.

There was no mistaking that their arms were similar. Yet, several crucial differences existed between the two of them. But, as Blue tried to get a closer look at what his double's arm looked like, a sudden jarring noise from above him forced him to close his eyes out of pain.

An odd force began to emanate from within the beast's body as it roared once more. All of a sudden, Blue was ejected from the beast's carapace, blasting him away and into the air. Blue flew into the snow, sending white scattering all around him. Coughing up snow, Blue scrambled back onto his feet and grabbed onto his right arm with his other paw. He turned back to the beast, and saw that his double had turned his back to him.

"Don't go!" Blue rushed up to the beast's carapace, disregarding his safety, "Please, answer my questions! Where am I? What happened?!" His double stopped for a moment, but it didn't speak. Instead, the reflection just shook its head and began to walk away.

"Answer me, damn you!" With a furious howl, Blue slammed his fists into the beast's body. A loud splattering noise rang out as his paws sunk into the black carapace. Unfortunately for Blue, his actions had little to no effect. Soon, his reflection vanished into the darkness, leaving the Riolu alone and frustrated. Growling in anger, Blue pulled out his paws from the beast's carapace. He contemplated jumping into the mirror to catch his double.

Another ear – splitting roar exploded from above the Riolu, scattering his thoughts, and sending him back onto his knees. Blue covered his ears in a vain attempt to block out the sound. He looked up at the creature, and saw that it had reared back and onto its hind legs. It was nothing more than a miracle that the creature had stayed passive for as long as it did. And now, the miracle had vanished, just like his reflection.

Two monolithic legs hovered above, waiting to crush him. Once more, there was nothing Blue could do but close his eyes and await the inevitable.

* * *

"Alright sleepyhead. It's time for you to wake up!"

Wearing a mischievous grin on my face, I held the water – filled berry pot over Blue's snoozing face. Then, with a quiet giggle, I tipped over the clay pot and spilled the icy cold liquid all over him, drenching his face and splattering all over his fur.

"Bweh!" To my delight, the effect of the water was immediate. His eyes sprung wide open as he felt the chilly water on his face. He sneezed and sat up, spitting out the water that got into his mouth. I acted as innocent as I could as he looked around with a confused expression on his face.

"Good afternoon, Blue," My voice had a certain prideful tone to it as I nonchalantly put the berry put back inside my pack. I leaned over to his face and grinned, "did you have a good nap?"

"Wha... what?" Water dripped off his bewildered face as he tried to make sense of what was going on, "Where am I now?"

I tried to stifle a giggle with my paw as he wiped the water off his face. Blue really can't handle being forced awake, could he? Shaking my head, I backed off from him and let him slowly return from the realm of dreams.

"You fell asleep, silly," I said as gave him a playful nudge on his forehead, "don't you remember? I said we should get going once it gets a little bit cooler."

"Oh... oh right," Blue put his paw on his forehead as he took a deep breath. He looked like he was finally waking up, "right... we're going to find that Panacea... right..."

His reaction was a little strange. I tilted my head and gave him a worried look. Blue's breathing was erratic, and his chest continued to heave in and out as if he had just finished running a marathon. His right paw was twitching in a disturbing way. My previous gaiety was quickly being replaced by a sense of worry.

"Blue...?" I asked him in a quiet voice. I reached forward and held onto his other paw, trying to calm down his errant twitching, "Are you feeling alright?"

"Huh?" Blue replied with a surprised look on face, pulling his paw away from his face. I noticed that his eyes were still opened quite wide, and his pupils were dilated to an almost extreme size.

"Did you have a nightmare?" Concerned about his condition, I put my paws around his face and tried to get a closer look at his eyes. In response, Blue tilted his head down, trying to keep his eyes away from mine. Despite the icy water I poured on his face, his cheeks felt burning hot.

"...I can't remember," Blue spoke in a small voice. He pulled away my paws and shook his head, "I suppose I might've had a nightmare, I guess."

"You guess?"

Blue shook his head again and held up his right paw. He directed his eyes toward it, staring at his own arm with an unfathomable expression on his face.

"Is there something wrong with your arm?" I put my paws on his arm and pulled it closer to me, curious as to what he was looking at, "I don't see anything wrong with it."

"Mmh..." He made a thoughtful noise and dropped his arm back to his side, "It's weird... for some reason, I couldn't feel anything in my right arm."

I smirked at Blue and shook my head, "You were leaning on your arm earlier, Blue." I pointed at the stone wall of the fountain behind him, "It probably fell asleep along with you."

"Huh," Blue glanced at his arm again, "makes sense."

"What kind of nightmare did you have?" I asked, wondering about his dream, "Was it scary?"

Blue folded his arms across his chest and closed his eyes. For a moment, he fell silent as I assumed he was trying to recall the events in his dream. But, eventually, he opened his eyes and shrugged at me.

"You can't remember?"

"Not a thing," Blue said with a shake of his head. All of a sudden, he smirked and placed his paw on top of my head and began to mess up my fur, "maybe you washed away my dream by spilling all that water over me, Fée."

"Errgh!" Annoyed, I brushed his paws off my head. Now my fur looked all messy and unkempt. Well, it was already really frumpy before, but that was beside the point. I sent him an angry glare as I puffed out my cheeks to show my irritation, "Well it's your fault for being so hard to wake up any other way, Blue."

"Heh, I can't help it," he said as he brushed a water droplet off the top of his muzzle, "what can I say? I'm a heavy sleeper."

I gave him a sly grin and took out one of the berry pots in my pack "Then that means I should prepare water every time you decide to sleep. Otherwise you might just end up snoozing the entire day away."

"I'd like it if you could find some other way to wake me up actually..." Blue grumbled as he eyed the berry pot in my paws. I giggled and gave him a playful shove.

Putting the berry pot back inside my pack again, I looked up into the sky. As I expected, the sun was now hidden behind several puffy clouds, casting a cool shade over the land. If we were going to depart from town, this would be the perfect opportunity. Throwing my pack's strap over my neck, I stood up and stretched my legs.

"Come on Blue, let's get moving," I turned toward Blue, who was still sitting on the ground, yawning. "the sun wont stay cooperative forever. Let's go on our expedition before the temperature rises again."

"I don't know..." Blue had his playful grin on his face again as he struggled to stand on his injured leg, "I rather like the heat. It's a lot better than the cold, in my opinion."

I wormed my way underneath his right arm to support him. I shot him a withering look as he used me as a crutch to stand back up, "That's because your fur isn't as thick as mine." I shook my ruff to emphasize my point, "If you had this thing around your neck, maybe you'd think otherwise." Huffing, I began to drag him away from the fountain and toward the town gates.

He chuckled in response to my plight. He curled his arm around my neck and patted my fluffy ruff, "Why don't you turn into a Sylveon like Barie then?" He suggested with a smirk, "That guy had fur almost as short as mine."

I snorted, "Would you like it if I evolved into something annoying like Barie?" Despite the irritated look on my face, my question to Blue was genuine. Unlike Corphish, who could only transform into a Crawdaunt when his time came, I had much more choices in store for me in the future. And today, I've discovered that my number of potential evolutions have increased by one.

To be honest though, I don't really know what kind of Pokémon I'd like to become when it was my turn to evolve. I remember when I would pore over books on evolution all the time when I was still a young girl. Even now, I can recall word – by – word what the book said.

'I could become tranquil as water, fierce as the raging thunder, passionate as a flame, silent like the darkness, radiant as the light, expansive like nature or steadfast like a glacier.'

But now that I think about it... what was a Sylveon supposed to be? It didn't match up with anything I've ever read in Mr. Mime's library. I held my paw up to my mouth and mulled over what it could be. I never did get a straight answer from Barie earlier. I stuck out my tongue in disgust as I recalled how he acted earlier. Maybe the power of a Sylveon was to be a giant, annoying pest.

"To have you become like Barie, huh...?" Blue's voice snapped me out of my thoughts. I glanced up at him and saw him cupping his other paw under his chin. Underneath, I could see a faint smirk present on his blue face.

"You're not seriously considering it, are you?" I grumbled at him, already feeling annoyed.

"Heh... maybe I am," he moved his paw away from his face and onto my head, showing me his smirk in full. He tweaked my right ear, making the ribbon flutter a bit, "you already have a ribbon on your ear. All you need is one more on your chest, and you're halfway there."

"Ha, ha," I gave him a sarcastic laugh as I whapped him in the side with my ears, "if that's the case, you better find me another ribbon."

"I don't think I have enough money for another one," he replied in a serious voice, "you might have to wait a while for that."

"...you're not seriously considering it, are you?" I said again. He sounded like he was actually serious about giving me another ribbon, "I'm fine with just having one, Blue. In fact, I should be giving you something in return."

"In return?"

I nodded, "Since you mentioned money, I assume that you bought this ribbon for me?"

"Uhm..." Blue scratched the back of his head with a sheepish expression on his face. Bingo.

"Well," I spoke with a prideful voice as I flicked my tail up, "I know what I'm doing once we're done with this expedition."

Blue gave me a questioning look, but I ignored it and continued onward. Giggling to myself, I pondered what kind of gift would be best suited for my clueless friend.


	20. Don't you dare threaten our partners!

**• ****  
Chapter 19:**

**"Don't you dare threaten our partners!"**

With the sun safely hidden behind a layter of thick cloud, Blue and I continued our long trek toward the town gates. I acted as Blue's crutch for a portion of way there, wedging myself underneath his right arm and helping him limp across the streets. We attracted some curious onlookers as we traveled. I suppose we did make for a rather interesting sight. After all, it's not every day you see a six – legged, blue and brown – furred Pokémon limp through town!

Aside from the curious bystanders, I noticed that there were a lot of other Pokémon were also heading the same way with us. Furthermore, a lot of these Pokémon were also carrying Explorer's Packs, just like Blue and I.

"Looks like we're not the only explorers out on a journey, huh?" Blue remarked as a regal – looking Stantler trotted by us. A Explorer's Badge was present on the Stantler's chest, while a purple Explorer's Pack was slung around its neck. Following in the Stantler's wake was a couple of green – colored Deerling, all of which were also wearing shining badges and blue - colored packs.

"Looks like it," I grinned at the Deerling as they waved hello to us. From the way their badges gleamed in comparison to the Stantler's, I assumed that they were apprentices, just like we were. On the other hand, the Stantler's badge looked worn, with the color faded and the jewel in the center scratched. The Stantler was probably an experienced explorer sent along with the Deerling to train them. Mild jealously washed over me as I watched the Stantler lead his students toward the town gates.

"They look like a great, big family, don't they?" Blue commented, "I wonder if they're apprentices just like us?"

"The Deerling are," I pointed out, "but that Stantler at the lead is definitely a full – fledged explorer."

Blue raised an eyebrow at me, "Oh? How can you tell?"

I gestured toward the Stantler's pack in the distance, "See his Explorer's Pack? The purple color signifies that he's a graduated member of Kadabra's Guild." I squinted my eyes at the Stantler's retreating back, "I can't tell from this distance, but if we got a close look at his badge, there's probably a symbol engraved on it that shows his status."

"Symbol?" Blue opened his pack and pulled out his own badge. He held it up into the air and narrowed his eyes, "I don't see any symbols on this thing."

I giggled and shook my head at him, "That's because we just got it, Blue." I sat down and pointed at the badge on my ear, "Our rank as explorers increase as we continue our training at the guild. Once we reach a certain level, we become eligible to adventure out on our own, unsupervised."

"We're already doing that though," Blue pointed out. I shook my head and shrugged.

"That's... well I can't really understand why Wigglytuff and Chatot let us go on our own for our first expedition," sighing, I shook my head and shrugged, "I was kinda looking forward to having someone show us the ropes on our first trip out."

"Nah," Blue remarked as he threw his arms behind his head, "we'll be fine on our own. After all, we did get through that cave on the beach without any help, didn't we?"

"True..." I glanced at his right leg and sighed again, "but, it's not like we got out unscathed..."

"Feh," Blue snorted, "I keep telling everyone, it's not a big deal. So what if a rock bug thing bit me? I can hardly feel a thing anyway."

"Don't you remember what Chimecho said? The poison that a Kabuto secretes causes you to lose feeling in that limb eventually. So of course you wouldn't feel anything after a while..."

"Hrm..." Blue wore a pensive expression on his face as he considered my words. He bent forward and rubbed his paws around his right leg.

"Blue?" I asked, confused as to what he was doing. The Riolu shook his head and straightened himself. He then lifted his right leg and wiggled it around in the air, testing it out.

All of a sudden, he released a loud yelp as a look of pain shot across his face. With a quiet whimper, he retracted his leg and hunched back down, clutching it tight with his paws. Worried, I sped over to his side and pulled his pack off his shoulders. I dug around inside his pack for several frantic seconds before I pulled out the small package of Pecha Berries.

"Blue, Chimecho told you to take it easy on that leg," I gave him a reproachful look as I separated one berry from the rest and handed it to Blue. He snatched it out of my paws and gobbled it down, staining the fur around his muzzle bright pink in the process. Afterward, he took a deep breath of relief and leaned back, letting the berry soothe his pain. I let out a sigh and handed him back his pack.

"Are you sure you're alright, Blue?" I asked with a concerned expression of my face, my ears drooping as if to emphasize my worry. This whole time, I had thought his leg was getting better. But after what just happened, I found myself doubting whether or not that was true.

"It's alright, Fée," Blue grunted as he tried to force a smile back on his face, "I was just surprised, that's all. It didn't really hurt."

I groaned. That was such an obvious lie that even a Slowpoke would catch in an instant. Feeling frustrated at his bravado, I bumped him in the side with my head, eliciting a yelp of surprise from him.

"Blue, I'm not going to fall for that," I said, sending an angry glare at his wincing face, "I already know just how injured you are. There's no need for you to act so tough for my sake."

"Ahh..." Blue turned away and scratched his nose in a sheepish way, "I guess I can't fool you anymore, Fée." He moved his paws to the back of his head as he stood up, "I just didn't want you to worry, that's all."

Sighing, I reached up to his face and pawed the side of his muzzle. He really was a fool for trying to assuage me by ignoring his own pain. Still, I suppose I can't really get too angry at him. He was doing it for my sake, after all. For that, I felt a little grateful

"No, I can't accept that." I snagged the sides of Blue's face and pulled it toward me. A surprised look came over the Riolu's face as his red eyes met mine. I scrunched up my face and put on the most confident expression I could manage.

"Bwah?" Blue spoke through puckered lips as I squeezed the sides of his face together.

"There's one thing I learned about you since we've met two days ago, Blue," I said, keeping my gaze trained on Blue, "and it's that you're super strong, and you're super courageous."

"Thanks?"

"But!" I shook my head at his bewildered face, "That's also your biggest problem, I find. You're always jumping into dangerous situations without thinking, and you get hurt badly as a result."

"Remember when we were at the Beach Cave, and we spotted Koffing and Zubat?" I waited for him to nod before continuing, "You leapt straight into battle before even thinking of a plan on how to deal with them. Two on one, Blue. And as a result of that, you got a faceful of poison gas for your troubles!"

"Well... I thought I could handle them on my own," Blue mumbled, averting his gaze. "and I didn't want to involve you in the battle, since they might have tried to target you and hurt you."

In response to what he said, I let go of his face and spun around, giving him a gentle whap with my tail. When I turned back around, he had a surprised look on his face.

"I'm grateful for your consideration then, Blue." I closed my eyes and shook my head. When I opened them again, the confident expression on my face had returned. I reached up with my front paws and placed them on Blue's shoulders. I leaned forward, placing my muzzle close to his and staring right into his eyes, "but I'm no longer the same Fée as before. I want to become stronger, and braver, just like you!"

"That's why," I said in a cheerful voice as a big smile crawled onto my face, "from now on, I'm going to protect you when we go on expeditions! I'm going to make sure you never get hurt again! After all, we're partners! I can't just keep hiding behind you like a coward, Blue!"

"Eh? What do you mean?" Blue had a confused look on his face as he gaped at me. Feeling more and more confident by the second, I released my grip on Blue's shoulders and turned around, giving him a cheerful wave of my tail.

"I meant what I meant!" I said in a haughty voice, "If something dangerous happens, I'll be the one to protect you and keep you safe instead! Even after we find the Panacea and cure your leg, I'm still going to fight for you!"

"Heh," I heard him chuckle from behind me, "it's hard to believe that this is the same Fée that was sobbing out of fear just two days ago. Getting that badge must've really changed you."

"No, it's not because of the badge," I shook my head, letting the ribbons on my ear flutter around my face, "but rather, it's because I met you."

"Me?" He replied, sounding bewildered, "I don't think I did anything special, though."

"Of course you did something special," I turned around to smile at Blue, "you were the one who helped me out when I was at my lowest. You were the one who told me I could be strong. You were the one who supported me as I decided to finally take that first step into the guild."

"Actually, you were the one who helped me into the guild," Blue winked at me as he stuck out his right leg, "remember? I couldn't really walk down the staircase."

I puffed out my cheeks at him in annoyance. It was obvious that he knew what I meant, but he decided to ruin the mood on purpose. I stuck out my tongue at his grinning face and turned around in a huff. Sticking up my tail stiffly into the air, I sped up my gait and left Blue behind.

"H – hey! Fée, slow down! I was just kidding!"

"Hmph!" I flattened my ears down the sides of my face in a deliberate attempt to be uncooperative. Even I had shut my eyes, I could just imagine the flustered look on my friend's face. It felt a little fun to finally have the upper hand against him for once; a little payback for all the embarrassment I felt today.

"...watch out ahead of you...!"

"Eh?" What did he say? It sounded strange through my muffled hearing. I opened my eyes and raised up my ears. A large, blue wall loomed mere inches away from my face. A surge of panic raced through my body as I dug my feet into the dirt in an effort to stop myself from slamming into the wall. Unfortunately, my front paws ended up criss – crossing over each other, making me trip and fall forward, face – first.

_Bam!_

"Geh...!" The texture of the wall was like a huge sheet of sandpaper; it grated my face as I slid down the surface. After a several excruciating seconds, my chest hit the ground with a dull _thump_. I let out a pained whimper as I clutched my glowing face with my paws. It was itchy and covered in scratches. Just what did I run into?

My answer came in the form of a low growling noise from somewhere above me. Just hearing that deep grumble sent a bolt of fear racing through my body. All the confidence and bravery I had worked up earlier was beginning to ebb away, leaving me trembling on the ground with my paws covering my eyes.

"You again... do you get enjoyment from running into others?"

I peeked out from behind my paws. Immediately, I wished I hadn't. A large, scaly dragon – like figure towered over me. The sun shining over his head had covered his face in a shadow.

"I'm s – sorry!" I hastily apologized. As I cowered on the ground, I could feel an odd sense of deja – vu flash through my mind. Didn't something like this happen once already? I tried to remember, but another deep growl from the dragon sent my thoughts flying out of my mind.

"Get the heck away from her!" All of a sudden, Blue's arm came flying in between us. I turned my head to the right and saw my partner standing beside me, panting while glaring at the dragon, "If you want to fight, then I'll be happy to oblige. But I wont let you harm my partner!"

"You think you're some sort of tough guy, Riolu?" The dragon snapped back with a hiss, "Fine then, I've been bored out of my mind waiting here in this sun. I'll take out my frustration on you!"

The blue dragon's stark white talon glinted as he brought it up above his head. Despite that Blue only reached up to the dragon's midsection, he still steeled himself and went into a fighting pose. I saw his eyes wince as he shifted his weight off his bad leg.

"H – hold on, Blue!" In a panic, I pushed myself off the ground and grabbed onto Blue's torso, pinning his arms to his sides. My fear was replaced by worry for his well – being, "You can't fight! You'll make your injury worse!"

"Fée, get out of the way!" Blue shouted as he tried to lift his arms again, but I just tightened my grasp, keeping his arms immobilized. I can't let him fight, I wont let him get hurt protecting me again!

I screwed my face into an angry glare as I turned around and faced the angry dragon. He was huge, covered in rough scales, and had two long arms that were tipped with menacing talon – like claws with two long, blade – like protrusions come out of the sides... hold on a second, where have I seen this before?

"You... Eevee," the dragon hissed and pointed a claw at my face, sending a familiar shiver down my spine, "you sure have a lot of guts to pull this stunt on me again."

Staring down the frighteningly sharp point of that talon jarred my memory. All of a sudden, scenes from yesterday's fiasco at the huge crowd came flooding back into my mind. I know this dragon. I've met this dragon. I even know this dragon's name!

"L – Lazur?!" I gave a startled cry as I took a step back, bumping my tail against Blue's chest. The Gabite gave a snort at my realization, but kept his talon trained on my face.

"I don't remember ever giving you permission to use my name, Eevee," he continued to speak in his threatening voice, "for your sake, I suggest you keep your trap shut and never speak that name again."

"Where's Feldie?" I retorted, "Why are you standing here alone?"

Lazur let out a hiss and inched his talon even closer to my face. I took a deep gulp to calm my screaming nerves. It took everything I had inside of me to stay put in front of such a terrifying sight. Behind me, I could hear Blue snarling as he saw the dragon try to threaten me. No, I can't let Blue fight! I have to think of some way to make him back off!

Steeling my resolve, I glared straight into Lazur's eyes and stated, "Aren't you trying to become an explorer as well, _Lazur?_" Using his name elicited another angry hiss from the dragon. Undaunted, I continued, "Don't you know that explorer apprentices are forbidden from fighting each other?" A faltering look flashed across his face as I dropped that tidbit of information on him. I had to hold back the smirk that was trying to inch its way onto my face. I had a weapon to use against him!

I pointed at the badge present on my ear, "As you can see, I'm an explorer apprentice now! If you lay even a single scratch on my face, I can prevent you _and _Feldie from applying for apprenticeship by simply reporting this incident!" His talon began to wobble as his snarling expression began to slip off his face. Feeling more and more confident by the second, I pressed on, "Didn't you and Feldie want to become explorers? Isn't that why you came to Treasure Town? How would you feel if you had to tell Feldie that you couldn't explore anymore? All because you couldn't let go of a small mistake!"

My words were like an arrow striking right into Lazur's heart. He took step back, his eyes wide and his dangerous arms flopping to his side like rags. He gaped at me with his fanged mouth open wide. He was trying to say something, but the force behind my words had struck him speechless.

"Fée..." I heard Blue say. I felt a slight tinge of warmth on my cheeks when I heard the admiration in his voice. I smiled wide and stared directly at the flabbergasted Gabite. Inwardly, I was cheering as if I had just won a marathon against a thousand other Pokémon. I did it! I stood my ground and made Lazur back off all on my own! I didn't even have to throw a single punch!

"Lazu~ur! I'm back!" All of a sudden, Lazur's face was drained of all its color. The voice came from somewhere behind Blue and I, making us turn around out of surprise. Standing behind us was a small, orange – shelled Pokémon. It was carrying two blue – colored bags in her jagged mouth by the straps. "Eh? Fée? Is that you?"

"Feldie!" I shouted in a happy tone as I rushed over to give the little Trapinch a hug, "It's good to see you again!"

"It's good to see you too!" Feldie replied, "You wouldn't believe everything we went through yesterday!"

"Same here!" I said as I let go of her head, "But we can fill each other in on the details later. How have you been?"

Feldie gave a little prideful chuckle as she swung her head around, making the bags fly forward and land in front of me with a thump.

"Are those Explorer's Packs?" I said, my eyes widening out of joy, "Congratulations, Feldie!"

"Thanks, Fée," she said as she threw one of the packs over her head, "I see you have your own as well – and a badge too!" She pointed at my ear with one of her stubby legs, "It goes well with your ribbon, I like it!"

"Heh heh..." I blushed a little as I pawed Blue's ribbon. Meanwhile, Lazur meandered over to our side with his head hung low. He picked up one of the Explorer's Packs and slung it over his shoulder, completely devoid of any words or emotion. Lazur sent me a desperate look, as if he was begging me to keep my mouth shut about the whole thing. Feldie seemed to have picked up on his mood and sent him a curious glance in return.

"Lazur? What's the matter?" Feldie said, looking concerned, "Does your stomach still hurt? Did you eat something off the floor again?"

"Bwuh?!" Lazur's head snapped up with a start, a blush was forming on his scaly cheeks, "N – no! I didn't!" He pointed a talon at Blue and I, "And don't say stupid things about me in front of others!"

"You ate something off the floor?" Blue said with a mean – looking smirk on his face as he folded his arms. Lazur growled and sent him an angry glare while Feldie sighed and shook her head.

"I thought you'd be happier, Lazur..." Feldie mumbled with her head hung low, "Hasn't it always been our dream to become explorers? Why the long face then?"

"W – what?!" Lazur spluttered as Feldie looked like she was about to cry. He swung his head left and right in a panic as he tried to make sense of the situation."H – hold on Feldie, I'm not being sad about this or anything, I'm happy, see? P – please don't cry!" He put on a big, dorky smile on his face as he tugged on the blue strap around his chest in an effort to pacify the sniffling Trapinch.

At first, I was a little confused about what Feldie was doing, but then I caught sight of her winking at me. I quickly stifled an oncoming rush of giggles as I realized what she was doing. Blue must've realized as well, since I could hear him failing to cover his chuckles.

"I don't believe you!" Feldie said in a hurt voice, "Weren't you the one who spent hours and hours keeping me awake yesterday talking about how excited you were about our first expedition? And now I find you standing here moping and sullen – faced!" She punctuated her words with several loud sniffles.

"E – erm...!" Lazur's face was completely red now. Even though he threatened me earlier, I couldn't help but pity the poor dragon. He had totally fallen into Feldie's trap, and now he couldn't find a way to get out. He was even sending Blue and I panicked looks, as if he was begging us to help him out. Seeing that only made it harder for us to hide our mirth.

"Or were you planning on quitting Team Sands, after all we've been through together?" Feldie said as she tried to cover her teary eyes with her stubby feet. Lazur looked thunderstruck when he heard her say that. Once more, all the color in his face drained, leaving him looking like a spooked ghost.

"S – sorry Feldie..." All traces of his dragon – like pride vanished as he hung his head low in an apologetic gesture. The dragon was completely, and utterly defeated. Feldie sneaked me a toothy smile before turning back to the now – depressed Lazur.

"Apology accepted," her tone made a total turnaround as she ran up to her dragon friend with a cheerful smile on her face. She gave him an affectionate nip in the leg with her jaw, making Lazur wince slightly. "There's no way I would ever give you up as a partner. You're my best buddy, Lazur!"

"S – so you're not mad at me?" Lazur mumbled as he picked up his orange – shelled friend.

Feldie frowned and bit him right on the nose, making him cry out in pain. "Of course I wasn't, you numbskull!" A look of relief appeared on the dragon's face, despite that the Trapinch had his nose in a painful – looking chomp. Feldie let go of Lazur's nose and motioned for the dragon to put her back on the ground. He obliged and the Trapinch turned around to face Blue and I, spitting out several blue scales in the process.

"So Fée," she said, "as you can see, this oaf and I are now partners in exploration for real."

"Hee hee..." I giggled at the prideful look on her face, "well, let me introduce to you my partner, Blue." I pointed at the Riolu standing behind me. Blue grinned and bowed at the little orange Pokémon.

"Eh?" Feldie had a startled look when she saw Blue, "I didn't notice earlier... but your partner... he's a Riolu?"

"Is there something wrong?" I asked, cocking my head to the side.

Feldie quickly shook her head. "N – no... it's not that," she glanced at Lazur for a second before turning back to me, "I'm just surprised, that's all." She held up one of her arms and pointed it at Blue, "I've never seen a Riolu before, especially where Lazur and I come from."

"Feh, it's a good thing too," Lazur said, "I've heard nothing but bad things about Riolu anyway."

"_Lazur!_" Feldie turned around and hissed at the Gabite, making him blanch, "Don't say such rude things to a friend!"

"G – guh..." Lazur was taken aback by the Trapinch's angry look, "I'm just saying the truth..."

"I'm sorry for his rudeness," Feldie said, giving Blue an apologetic look, "he doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut sometimes."

"It's alright," Blue said with a shrug, "I'm used to hearing people say things like that about Riolu by now. It's not a big deal."

"Still," Feldie shook her head, "I don't want you to think we believe in all those rumors about Riolu."

"I said it's alright," Blue repeated with a grin on his face, "to be honest with you, I don't even know what these rumors are. So I don't really care about what other people say when it comes to Riolu."

"I see..." Feldie turned toward me, "You have a pretty cool friend, Fée."

"You think so?" I glanced up at Blue. "I guess..."

"What do you mean by that?" Blue said in a mock – hurt voice as he reached down and started tickling my sides.

"Hee hee hee! No, stop! I'm really ticklish there! Heeeee!" I wriggled around in an attempt to escape his fingers, but he just wrapped his arms around my sides and lifted me up into the air. I took the chance to catch my breath from his tickling attack.

"Whew..." I shook my head and tried to twist my neck around to glare at Blue, who was wearing a victorious grin on his face. Sighing, I let my head flop down in defeat. "Alright, alright! You're cool, jeez! Now let me go!"

"Heh," Blue obliged with a short chuckle and put me back on the ground. I whipped him with my tail and turned away from him. Feldie was watching us with an amused look on her face.

"And they say Riolu are unsociable," Feldie remarked, "you two are really good friends. I'm a little jealous."

"He's just a big pain," I replied.

"Oh, I know how that feels," Feldie nodded sagely, her eyes darting to the Gabite standing behind her.

We gave each other a knowing glance as we broke into playful giggles while Blue and Lazur gave us looks of either annoyance or bewilderment. We didn't care though, we were having too much fun laughing at their expense.

"Well, well, well, would you look at that? It's a gathering of fools and idiots!" Feldie and I glanced at each other, our mouths wide open from having our laughter cut short by that sudden remark. I was confused and startled. Who would say such a horrible thing? As I turned around to see who it was, I heard a low growl emanate from Blue's throat.

A trio of orange – red Pokémon were strutting down the road toward us. At the head of the group was a cackling Monferno, surrounded by a drowsy – looking Combusken and a fidgeting Pignite. The Monferno was clutching his belly as he pointed at the four of us. His face was scrunched up in laughter as he continued to cackle at his own words.

"H – how rude...!" Feldie snarled, sounding outraged. I couldn't agree more with my friend.

"Kah, hah, hah!" Monferno let out an even louder cackle right in our faces when he reached our group. His face curled up into a crude sneer as he placed his hands on his hips in a haughty manner while his burning tail whipped side by side, sending sparks scattering around him.

"Monferno..." Blue growled, his paws clenching into fists, "What do you want?"

"I thought I heard the voices of fools and weaklings in the distance," Monferno replied with a smirk, "so I thought I should go check it out. And what do you know? It was you, you stupid Riolu."

"Y – you know each other?" I stared at Blue with my eyes open wide.

"Unfortunately," Blue hissed with a small nod. He pointed a finger at the Monferno, "are you just here to insult us, Monferno? Don't you have anything better to do?"

Monferno cackled again, bending forward while clutching his belly, "Kah, hah, hah! You must be mistaken!" He raised up his head again and held a fist up to Blue's face, just mere inches away from his muzzle, "I don't have time to waste on fools like you!"

"Then what are you here for?" Lazur growled as he held up his talons. Monferno gave the dragon a dismissive look before turning back to Blue.

"Keh, this doesn't involve you, _lizard,_" he spat, making Lazur snarl in fury, "I'm only here to tell this coward one thing."

"Coward?" Blue said, his voice dripping with venom. Monferno's smirk vanished off his face and was replaced by a disgusted – looking frown.

"Don't think you can run from me forever, Riolu." The rude Pokémon tugged at the red strap around his shoulders, making my jaw drop as he revealed his own Explorer's Pack. He shoved his hand inside and withdrew a small, white – colored badge. There was the number 40 inscribed in black ink on the badge. Blue's eyes narrowed when he caught sight of the badge.

"Number 27, a Riolu from Crystal Caves," Monferno sneered as he flung the badge at Blue, "that was you, wasn't it?"

Blue caught the badge in his paws without speaking a word. Monferno continued to leer at my friend, his face was now an angry scowl.

"It was, wasn't it?" He repeated in a louder, angrier tone, "There were no other Riolu around in town, it must've been you!"

"...so what if it was me?" Blue replied in a scathing voice. He threw the badge away and glared at him, "That battle royale's over now. What does it matter?"

Monferno let out a loud screeching noise, making everyone – including the passerby – flinch at the noise. His tail flame exploded as he clenched both of his fists at Blue's remark.

"Of course it matters, you blasted Riolu!" He snarled in a fury, "You were to be my opponent! You were supposed to be crushed under my heel in front of everybody! I was to humiliate you in front of the Guildmaster!"

After releasing that outrageous remark, he grabbed his tail and jabbed it toward Blue, the flame mere inches away from his face. Blue didn't react to the heat, and instead continued to stare down the furious Monferno.

"Not only that, your absence caused Machoke to leave the arena! You ruined my plans to impress the Guildmaster with my amazing fighting skills! Do you know how furious I was when I stood in the center of that arena without an opponent and without the Guildmaster watching me?"

"Not at all," Blue replied bluntly, "I had more important things on my mind at the time."

"I was livid! Filled with rage! Enraged! _Outraged!_"

Monferno swiped at Blue with his tail, attempting to whip his face with the burning end. Blue, however, just leaned his head back and let the burning whip soar past his muzzle harmlessly. Feldie and I both snarled in anger at Monferno's sudden attack. We rushed up in front of Blue and pointed at Monferno.

"That was uncalled for!" I shouted, my fur bristling in anger.

"That's right!" Feldie added, showing Monferno her sharp fangs, "How dare you attack him like that?"

"You two weaklings shut your traps!" Monferno snarled, pointing his tail at us, "Unless you want to have a taste of my flames as well!"

Feldie made an angry hissing noise at Monferno. My own anger was reaching the boiling point as well. He wanted to fight Blue just to make a fool out of him? How petty! I just couldn't believe someone could be so shallow! And he was an explorer too, no less!

I opened my mouth to tell him off, but all of a sudden, a sandy gust of wind blew into my face and interrupted me. As I coughed out the gunk that got into my mouth, I saw two blue shadows move past Feldie and I, separating us from the angry Monferno.

"Don't you dare..."

"...threaten our partners!"

Both Blue and Lazur both taken a heavy step forward, standing in front of Feldie and I. Blue had clenched his paws into fists and held them in front of his chest, while Lazur had bared his sharp fangs and talons. The two of them both had furious expressions on their faces as they pointed their weapons at Monferno, their eyes daring him to move a single step.

"You can threaten me, insult me or hurt me all you want," Blue said in a low voice, "but if you ever lay a hand on my partner..."

"...then I'll make sure you lie at the bottom of the plateau in pieces!" Lazur finished, his eyes glinting with a malicious light.

The sheer intensity of their combined glares made Monferno take a nervous step back. His cocky sneer was wiped off his face by the cooperative efforts of Blue and Lazur.

"I don't care if I lose my badge or if I get barred from exploring," Lazur growled, "as long as I can keep Feldie safe, I'll gladly break any rule in the book!"

"L – Lazur..." Feldie said in an awed voice. I glanced over to Blue. He didn't say anything, but instead, he just nodded in agreement at Lazur's words.

"Keh..." Monferno backed up another step. He looked as though someone had slung a pile of mud into his face. He glanced at his partners and snorted, "Combusken, Pignite. We're going."

"Eh?" Pignite jumped up with a start. Combusken, however, just yawned and shrugged.

"I said, we're going!" Monferno snarled, his face darkened with anger, "We're wasting valuable time playing with these idiots. Come on."

Trembling with ill – hidden rage, Monferno forced his way through, giving Blue and Lazur the evil eye as he walked past us. Pignite and Combusken followed their leader, with Pignite giving us an apologetic look as he did so.

"Hey wait," Blue grabbed onto Pignite's shoulder. The pudgy Pokémon squealed in surprise as Blue held him behind.

"W – what is it? Please don't hurt me, I swear I mean you guys no harm!"

Blue shook his head and gave him a grin, "Don't worry. I just have something for you."

"H – huh?"

Blue rummaged around inside his pack until he took out the small bag of biscuits that Duskull had given us. He shoved the bag into the shocked Pignite's hands and patted his back.

"I heard your stomach rumbling earlier. Did Monferno stop you from eating again?"

"Y – yeah..." Pignite gave Blue a sad nod, "He didn't let Combusken and I eat anything at all during breakfast." As if to emphasize his words, his stomach let loose a loud grumble, "He was really, really mad when you didn't show up to his match yesterday, you know."

"I could tell," Blue said with a grin. He patted Pignite's back again and pushed him toward the rest of his group, "either way, you should get going. You can share those biscuits with Combusken, but don't let Monferno see them. He might get mad."

"Thank you so much, Riolu!" A few biscuits spilled out of the bag as he bowed low at Blue.

"PIGNITE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING STAYING BEHIND? HURRY UP!" Squealing, Pignite hurried to pick up the fallen biscuits. He gave us another quick bow before rushing off to rejoin his group. In the distance, I could see Monferno glowering at us, his tail still searing with fire.

"What an absolute creep," Feldie grumbled as she watched the orange trio disappear through the town gates. "I hope I never see that Monferno again."

"You and me both," I replied, feeling just as angry at them as Feldie was, "that guy was such a jerk. I can't believe he was allowed to become an explorer."

"There's all kinds of explorers out there, Fée," Feldie said sagely, "just like how there's all sorts of Pokémon in the world. After all, that Pignite guy didn't seem too bad."

I nodded at Feldie before turning to Blue, "Come to think of it, where did you meet those three, Blue?"

"It's a long story," Blue said with a shrug, "and not a very nice one. I'll tell you some other time."

"Oh, right!" I slapped my face with my paw, "We should get going before the sun comes back out. Otherwise the heat will be unbearable while we travel."

"You two are heading out on your first expeditions too?" Feldie said.

I nodded, "That's right. And you two are heading out as well, right?"

"Mmhm," Feldie said as she began to walk toward the gates, with the rest of us following her orange – shelled back, "our Guildmaster wants us to experience exploring as soon as possible. He said it's good for newbies to get a taste of what it's like immediately."

"Your Guildmaster?" I eyed Lazur's blue – colored Explorer's Pack with curiosity, "Come to think of it, what guild did you two join?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Feldie said in a smug voice, "We joined Kadabra's!"

I goggled at her, "Seriously?"

"I know, it's a little unbelievable, considering how much of an oaf my partner is sometimes..."

"Hey..." Lazur grumbled as he fiddled with his strap.

Feldie snorted and ignored him, "When we finally arrived at town yesterday, he wanted to go to Machoke's and join their guild." She shook her head and stuck out her tongue, "But when we got there, the entire guildhouse was completely empty. Can you believe it?"

"I can." Blue remarked.

"Anyway, so while we were wondering what we should do, this panicky – looking Sunflora ran up to us with a bundle of wanted posters and asked us to go put them up at Kadabra's guild for them."

"Sunflora!?" I said with a start as I remembered yesterday's events.

Feldie nodded, "Before we could say anything, that Sunflora just shoved a bunch of posters in our – well, Lazur's – arms and ran off. So I thought 'why not?' and we headed off toward Kadabra's."

"What happened then?"

"Well, this guy was super uncooperative the whole time," Feldie jerked her head toward Lazur, eliciting a grumble from the dragon, "but we ended up spending most of the afternoon pasting up posters of some criminal named Drowzee. Well, it was mostly Lazur." The Trapinch stopped to wiggle one of her legs at us, "I can't really do much with these, heh, heh."

"That didn't stop you from 'helping' with your mouth," Lazur remarked with a smirk on his face, "you punctured so many holes in the posters by trying to put them up with your teeth."

"S – shut up..." Feldie blushed as she turned away from the dragon, "you popped several holes in the posters too, remember? With your big, dumb claws."

"Hey!" Lazur growled as he held up his talons, "I can't help it if I have claws instead of paws or hands!"

"Hmph, at least you have arms." The two of them glowered at each other while Blue and I tittered silently behind them.

"So... what happened after you guys finished putting up the posters?" Blue asked, stifling his chuckles with his paw.

Feldie snapped out of her angry stare and replied, "Well, after we stuck up all the posters – the ones without holes anyway – we sat down inside their guildhouse for a break." The Trapinch grinned and held up the strap around her neck, "Then, while Lazur was complaining about doing work for free, who else but Guildmaster Kadabra himself came waltzing out of one of the doorways!"

"Guildmaster Kadabra noticed the two of us just sitting there like a couple'a bums and walked up to us."

"Wow... you must've been really nervous!" I said, "I wouldn't know what I would've done if that happened to me..."

"Probably not what Feldie did," Lazur said as he gave a deep chuckle, "she went totally ballistic and nearly bit my foot off."

"I did not!" Feldie retorted in an indignant voice, her face glowing red, "Well... maybe I was a little nervous, but I did not bite you that hard!"

"Sure, and my leg wasn't aching all day afterward."

"Ergh... _anyway!_" Feldie huffed and turned away from Lazur, "Guildmaster Kadabra asked Lazur and I why we were just sitting around doing nothing at all."

"Which we were."

"And he said that instead of wasting time, we would be better off spending it doing something more constructive. And he handed us a piece of paper with all these test questions written on it."

"It wasn't very hard, and I aced it immediately." Feldie gave a prideful snort, "It was also multiple choice, so all we had to do was pop holes in the paper instead of writing anything down." She bared her sharp teeth while Lazur played around with his talons.

"I've heard that Kadabra's Guild gives out pretty hard examinations," I remarked, "you must be pretty smart to be able to get a perfect score on it."

"Well, what can I say?" The Trapinch gave me a toothy grin, "I'm a Trapinch of many talents."

"Except being able to pick things up," Lazur snarked.

"I'm going to bite you again if you make another remark about my arms, Lazur," Feldie muttered, flashing her fangs at him.

Lazur gulped and closed his mouth. It looks like he really didn't like to be on the wrong end of those sharp teeth. I couldn't blame him. If she could make a Pokémon covered in hard scales flinch with her bite, how bad would it hurt if she bit someone like me? I shuddered just thinking about it.

"Continuing on," Feldie said, turning away from the cowed Gabite, "Kadabra didn't react when we turned in our papers, so I had expected the worst." The Trapinch shook her head, "Especially when Lazur's paper looked more like a Beedrill's hive instead of a worksheet."

Lazur looked away and mumbled something about correcting his answers.

"So imagine my surprise when the Guildmaster exited his office with a pair of Explorer's Packs and matching badges." Trapinch grinned as she plucked her pack's strap, "Lazur's reaction was better though."

"How did he react?" I said, feeling a little eager to hear. Especially since Lazur kept shooting Feldie nervous glances from beside me.

"Well..." Feldie giggled and gave Lazur a wink, "he was so overjoyed that he almost injured poor Guildmaster Kadabra with his talons when they shook hands. When that happened, poor Lazur got so scared that he was going to get kicked out that he begged the Guildmaster to forgive him!"

"F – Feldie...!" Lazur had a horrified look on his face, "You promised that you wouldn't tell anyone about that!"

"Consider it payback for that arm remark earlier," Feldie said, sticking her tongue out at Lazur. The blue dragon sighed and fell silent. The Trapinch giggled again and slowed down her pace so she was walking next to Lazur. She gave him a playful nip on the ankle and grinned, "Oh don't look so down, partner! I was just kidding!"

Lazur picked her up and put her on his shoulder, "You're a serious pain in my side, you know that?"

"Yep!" Feldie smiled and chomped the side of his head, "I wouldn't have it any other way!"

Despite appearances, these two were really good friends, I thought. I glanced over to Blue, who was chuckling at the antics between the two scaly Pokémon. I wondered if we looked like that to others when the Riolu would tease me. Smiling to myself, I shook my head and gave Blue's paw a quick whap with my tail, making him jump up with a start.

"Eh?" Blue said to me, surprised, "What's the matter, Fée?"

"It's nothing," I said, giving the oblivious Riolu a cheerful smile, "nothing at all, partner."

* * *

When the four of us reached the town gates, we halted at a small, wooden gatehouse that was built right next to it. Two Pokémon were sitting inside the tiny wooden hut. One of them, a round, ball – like Pokémon called Electrode rolled out of the gatehouse and stopped in front of us.

"Explorer apprentices, eh?" The Electrode said with a commanding voice. A huge grin was present on the bottom half of his face, the red half, "You know the rules. Badges out."

I sat down and gestured at my badge on my ear while Blue, Feldie and Lazur all took their badges out of their packs. The Electrode rolled side – by – side in front of us, examining each of our badges individually. After he had finished checking the last one – Lazur's – he rolled back to his original spot and turned toward the gatehouse.

"Oi, Chinchou!" He shouted at the hut, "We got two apprentices from Wigglytuff's and two from Kadabra's. Shine'em up, would'ya?"

"Aye!" A sharp voice came out from inside the wooden house, drawing our attention toward it. From within the tiny hut, an even tinier Pokémon flopped out. It was a blue, slimy – looking Pokémon with two yellow antennae sticking out of his head. The Pokémon – Chinchou – bounced over to Electrode and hopped on top of him.

"The four of you, would you please look at me?" Chinchou said, wiggling his antennae at us. We obliged him and looked up. "Good! Try not to blink, now!"

"Blink?" I said, wondering what he meant.

"Yep, keep your eyes open!" Chinchou said in a cheerful voice as he wiggled his antennae, "Now then, on the count of three...! Two...! One...!"

"Gyah!" A chorus of pained cries erupted from the four of us. A bright, blinding light exploded out from Chinchou's antennae, making me blanch and cover my face with my paws. Even through my eyelids, I could still see Chinchou's faint outline.

"W – what was that for?!" Blue said beside me.

"Identification!" Chinchou said, unfazed by the pain he had just caused us, "We can tell who you are by just looking at the shadows behind you when I use flash."

"It's a lot more accurate than just looking at your faces," Electrode added, "after all, some Pokémon are capable of mimicking the appearances of others."

I could make out the silhouette of Chinchou nodding on top of Electrode's head, "That's right. With my flash, I can easily reveal any pesky intruders trying to sneak in or our of town by copying another Pokémon's features!"

"I – I see..." I groaned as I rubbed the shining spots out of my eyes, "That's... pretty clever..."

"Painful, but I suppose if it works..." Feldie said, shaking her head left and right.

"Anwyay, the four of you are cleared to go." Electrode said as Chinchou leapt off his head. The two of them got out of our way and back into the gatehouse, but not before giving us some parting words, "Have a safe trip out there, kids!"

"T – thanks..." I said back at him, my head still a little dazed.

The four of us wobbled our way through the town gates, still recovering from the sudden burst of light. As we made our way down the long slope that connected the great plateau to the land below, I gazed out at the vast frontier that stretched out in front of us.

Trees, hills, mountains, rivers and the sea... The frontier truly is a wondrous place for explorers. Just a few days ago, I could only dream of heading out of town to seek out adventure and explore the lands that lied around me. Now, that dream had become a reality. With Blue at my side, I can finally leave the safety and shelter of Treasure Town and see the world with my own eyes.

I felt my excitement rising with every step I took. Walking down the road, side by side with friends that I'd never imagined that I would have. It was such an unfamiliar feeling to me, but it was a feeling that I cherished. Taking a peek at Blue, I saw him gazing out into the frontier as well. Was he feeling as exhilarated as I was? I sure hoped so.

Lazur and Feldie both wore awed looks on their faces. Lazur had taken Feldie back onto his shoulder, giving her a better look at the world around us from his height. Inwardly, I wished that Blue could do the same to me as well, but I didn't want him to strain his legs by carrying my weight. So I just settled for seeing the world on my own legs.

A wild thought ran through my mind as I saw his arms swing back and forth in a casual way. If I had Barie's ribbons, could I be able to walk with Blue while holding onto his paws? I imagined my ribbons wrapped around my partner's arm as we walked down the slope together. It would be nice, wouldn't it...?

"Looks like this is where the slope ends."

Feldie's voice snapped me out of my daydream. My face flushed red as I quickly dismissed my previous thoughts. Thankfully, it seemed as though no one noticed my embarrassment.

The slope terminated into a large, dirt road that stretched out and away from Treasure Town. I glanced around us as we stood in the middle of the road. It's hard to imagine that, just yesterday, there were hundreds, maybe thousands of Pokémon standing in line right here. As I looked down, I realized that we were surrounded by an unbelievable amount of footprints.

To my right, I recognized the road through the forest that I usually took to go to the beach. Smiling, I turned to Blue and noticed that he was staring at it too.

"There's a crossroads up ahead," Feldie stated as she pointed ahead of us, "it looks like we'll be splitting up sooner than I thought."

"It can't really be helped," I said, my ears flopping down in disappointment, "we all have our own destinations."

"It's alright Fée," Feldie said as she hopped off Lazur's shoulder. She trotted over to my side and gave me a big toothy smile, "I'm sure we'll meet again soon! Who knows? We might even be able to go on an expedition together someday!"

"You're right!" my ears perked up as I clasped my paws together, "We're all explorers now, we can meet each other any time we want!"

Lazur grumbled and folded his arms, "I'd rather do things on my own. There's no need to buddy up with these two, Feldie."

"Oh?" Blue smirked and folded his arms as well, returning the Gabite's stare, "Then you wouldn't mind if we left you home while the three of us went out on an adventure, would you?"

"You try that and you might just find yourself furless one day, _Riolu_..." Gabite threatened, glaring down at Blue.

"My name's Blue," Blue retorted, shrugging, "and there's no way you'd be able to give me a haircut with those toothpicks, _lizard._"

"And my name is Lazur," the Gabite said, holding up one of his talons at Blue, "and I'll show you what these _toothpicks_ can do one day."

"Woah, what a terrifying threat from the _oaf_!" Blue sniggered as he pretended to flinch at the sight of Lazur's claws.

Feldie and I sighed and shook our heads in exasperation as our partners continued to argue and glare at each other. What happened to the camaraderie they showed when they were defending us from Monferno? Easy come, easy go I suppose.

* * *

After a few tense minutes of walking, I noticed that the dirt road was slowly becoming softer and softer. I looked down and realized that the dirt had transformed into grass. The forest that surrounded the town had abruptly stopped, giving way to a massive field of yellow. It was like standing in the middle of an ocean of grass. The fresh, summer breeze blew past us, billowing a wave through the sea of gold.

In the center of the field stood a wizened – looking stone pillar that towered over our group. Even Lazur, the tallest out of all of us, barely reached the halfway point of the pillar. Nailed onto the pillar were a ridiculous amount of wooden slats pointing to different locations into the golden grassland. Feldie and Lazur walked over to the pillar and checked out one of the slats.

"There it is!" Feldie said in a cheerful voice, "This way leads to 'Rugged Ridge!' That's where we're headed!"

"About time," Lazur grumbled in a frustrated tone, but the smile on his face told a different story. "Our teacher must've been waiting there for ages." He wrung his talons together and picked Feldie out of the tall grass.

"So we're heading off this way," Feldie said to Blue and I, "what about you two?"

"Oh... um," come to think of it, we haven't actually looked at the letter Duskull handed us yet. We don't even know the name of our destination yet.

"It's a secret," Blue answered for me, "our Guildmaster told us to keep our mouths shut about it."

"I see..." Feldie looked a little disappointed, but her smile quickly returned to her face after a moment, "Well, if your Guildmaster said so, then I guess it can't be helped!"

"I'm sorry Feldie," I said, shaking my head at her, "I'd love to tell you, I really do!"

"Don't sweat it, Fée!" Feldie replied, "It's not a big deal."

"Feldie, let's get moving," Lazur said, jerking a talon over to their destination. Feldie nodded, giving Lazur permission to take the two of them away toward their destination.

"Take care!" I shouted after them, waving my paw at the retreating orange and blue pair. Feldie turned around on Lazur's shoulder and waved back at me.

"You too, Fée!" She shouted, "And Blue! Don't you let her get into any trouble, okay?"

"Of course!" Blue replied with a wave, "I'll keep her safe, don't worry!"

"H – hey, that's my line!" I gave Blue a playful nudge with my paw. I turned back to Feldie to say goodbye again, but the two of them had already vanished into the sea of gold. Smiling, I turned back to Blue and sighed. "Well, they're gone."

"Then it's our turn to depart," Blue grinned as he rubbed my head, "come on Fée, let's crack open Duskull's letter and get going."

"Alright," I couldn't help but giggle at his enthusiasm as I pulled my bag off my neck, "let's take a look, shall we?"

Reaching inside my pack, I groped around until I felt Duskull's letter buried underneath a length of rope. Taking care not to tear the fragile paper, I pulled it out and held it in front of Blue and I. After taking a quick glance around us to make sure there were no one else around, I unfolded his letter.

"Well, what does it say?" Blue urged, sticking his muzzle next to mine as he tried to read the letter, "Come on, tell me!"

"Hold on," I blushed as I pushed his face away from the letter, "his writing's a little fancy, give me a second to try and read this..."

Duskull's writing was loopy and elegant, completely unlike the more plain way most Pokémon write. Furthermore, it wasn't just a single word or two that told the name of the place, but rather, it was a series of directions. However, at the very bottom of the letter were three, very distinct words.

"The Forlorn Forest..."

* * *

A cool breeze blew through the tall trees, rustling the canopy of leaves that served as the forest's ceiling. One unfortunate leaf found itself carried away by the breeze, sending it on a trip through the shadowy wood. The leaf flew in between the thick, gnarled tree trunks and through several spindle – like branches as the whimsical wind continued to whistle through the forest.

All of a sudden, a delicate, white – furred hand reached up and plucked the leaf out of the mischievous breeze's clutches, cutting its voyage through the forest short. The leaf's new owner held it in front of its face and stared at it with a curious gaze. After a moment, the Pokémon lowered its arm. It let the breeze pass through it, its yellow fur bristling in the cool wind. After a moment, the gale stopped, leaving the Pokémon alone in the middle of the silent forest once more.

"Hmm... that was quite a refreshing breeze, wouldn't you say so?"

The Pokémon nodded as it held on to the leaf with both its hands.

"What do you think it means, my dear?"

The Pokémon shook its head and glanced up at the forest's leafy canopy. A glimmer of worry sparkled in its eyes as it stared at the multitude of leaves above it.

"Do not fret. It was not an ominous wind, but a gentle zephyr carrying no woe."

It brought down its head and shook it.

"My, you're still worried?"

The Pokémon glanced down at the small leaf in its white - colored hands. It wasn't moving, as the wind had long flown past them.

"A single fallen leaf does not an ill omen make, my dear child. Do not be so frightened by trifling things."

It whimpered quietly.

"...alright. If it will ease your fear, I shall keep watch for any danger for you."

Nodding, the Pokémon held up the tiny leaf in its hands up into the air.

"Hm, hm... why don't you take care of that darling little leaf? You can add it to your collection back at the house."

It responded with a gleeful cheer and gave a deep bow before skipping off into the thicket of trees. The Pokémon kept a firm grip on the leaf, but not too tight. After all, it didn't want to damage its precious leaf.

An ominous wind? An ill omen? To the Pokémon, just hearing these words were a cause to worry. But, it knew that it did not need to be afraid. After all, it had a wonderful guardian protecting it. As long as it stayed in the forest, there was nothing to fear.


	21. Believe in me!

**•   
Chapter 20**

**"Believe in me!"**

As we followed Duskull's instructions, I asked my partner to hold up my Treasure Map for me. I scanned the detailed atlas of the frontier, keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of a forest labeled 'Forlorn Forest.' After several fruitless minutes of searching, I sighed and shook my head. Considering how secretive the Guildmaster and Duskull made the place sound, it really shouldn't surprise me that I couldn't find it on our map.

I pawed at the map and pulled it out of Blue's grasp. Taking care not to damage it, I rolled it up and stuffed it back inside my pack while feeling disappointed and frustrated at the same time. Not only were we being sent to a mysterious, unmarked location out in the frontier, but we weren't even given any sort of guide by the guild. Yes, I was excited to finally be able to go out on an adventure, but at the same time I couldn't help but feel worried about what sort of dangers we might end up facing.

I sneaked a peek at Blue's scarred leg. He had eaten another Pecha Berry before we set off from the signpost, so his gait wasn't as strained as before. In fact, he was walking in such a carefree way that I could barely even tell he was injured. He was even chewing a long blade of grass in his mouth.

All of a sudden, I felt a warm paw on top of my head, making me look up at him. As always, he had that same confident grin plastered over his muzzle. Smiling back at my partner, I made a silent promise to myself. No matter what happens, no matter what kind of dangers we face. I wont run away and hide.

"What are you thinking about, Fée?" Blue asked.

"It's nothing," I replied with a playful wag of my tail, "I was just wondering what kind of place Forlorn Forest is like."

Blue took his paw off my head and rubbed his chin. He closed his eyes and made a 'hmmmm'ing noise, looking like he was thinking hard about the question.

"Well... it's called the Forlorn Forest..." He said in a completely serious voice, "so... it must have a lot of trees, right?"

I gaped at him, flabbergasted. "That's... usually what a forest is, Blue."

"Oh."

"Goodness..." I slapped a paw on my face and shook my head, incredulous, "You're unbelievable sometimes, Blue."

He made a bark – like laugh and patted my head again. "Well, I hope you don't mind that your partner is an idiot!"

"Nah," I took his paw off my head and smiled at him, "I don't mind it at all." I shot him a sly look as I nibbled one of his fingers, "After all, it gives me an excuse to sit you down and drill some knowledge into that thick head of yours."

"I'm looking forward to it," Blue chuckled as he pulled his paw away from my mouth, "maybe you can teach me how to read sometime."

"Oh, I'm thinking about it." I smirked as I nudged him in the side with my paw, "Mark my words, Blue. I will make you literate before the summer ends!"

As we crested the top of a rather large hill, Blue and I decided to take a seat and rest our tired feet for a moment. While Blue was busying himself with another Pecha Berry, I took a look back at how far we've traveled.

The Great Plateau, with Treasure Town sitting on top of it, was merely a speck in the distance. The grasslands from before had shrunk into the horizon. It resembled a long string made out of gold, separating the earth below from the vast skies above.

The world was so amazing. As that one phrase went through my head, I couldn't help but nod in agreement with it. Minutes of silence passed by as I stood there in silence, just admiring the breathtaking view from atop the hill. The sky, the sun, the mountains and the trees... I wanted to take it all in and keep this view inside my memory forever.

"Hey, Fée," Blue nudged me with his paw, breaking me out of my reverie. I turned to face my friend and saw that he was pointing at something out in the distance. "look over there."

My eyes traveled along the length of his arm until I found what he was pointing at. Past a winding river and over several grassy knolls, there stood a pair of tall, craggy cliffs jutting out the side of a mountain. At first glance, it appeared to look like nothing more than a nondescript – but very pretty – cliffside. But, as I narrowed my eyes to get a better view, I noticed something strange jutting out in between the cliffs.

"Are those.. trees?"

If they were trees, then those were the largest trees I've ever seen in my entire life! Sticking out from in between the two jagged cliffs was a copse with incredibly tall and massive trees. They were so tall that they pierced into the sky like a series of gigantic, wooden spears. A layer of thick, dark green leaves canvassed the top of the forest, forming a vast and bushy roof. From a distance, it resembled a strong, stalwart castle that was built by nature itself.

I quickly turned to Blue and tugged at his paw, "Let's go get a closer look!" We shared a nod and set off toward the fortress of wood.

It didn't take long for Blue and I to descend the hill and wander our way over to the forest. We crossed the flowing river and snaked our way in between the grassy hills. Before long, the two of us found ourselves standing before the massive towers of wood. The trees looked large from a distance, but the sheer magnitude of their size really sank in when standing up close like this.

The tree trunks were thicker than any other tree I had ever seen before. Not only that, the trees grew so close to each other that they formed a natural border between the forest and the world outside. At the center of the trunk, just above the roots, there was a large, swirling knothole. I placed my paw against the bark. It felt tough and solid. For a moment, I thought I was touching a boulder instead of a tree.

Blue knocked against the tree trunk with the backside of his paw. It made a deep, echoing sound like a big drum. The sound bounced off the other trees as it traveled deeper into the forest, going _bong... bong... bong..._. Nervously, I wandered around the massive trunk and peered through the tiny sliver of space in between the trees.

The canopy of leaves that made up the ceiling of the forest stifled out any sort of light coming from the sky. However, several slivers of sunlight managed to eke through the leafy shield, casting a dim light into the wood in the form of tiny, golden beams. Furthermore, dotting all around the base of the trees were stubby little mushrooms that illuminated the ground with an eerie, blue glow.

Taking a deep gulp, I took another look at Duskull's letter. There was no doubt in my mind that this was the place. Everything I saw beyond the wooden ramparts matched the description he had written down... glanced at Blue, who was eying the shining mushrooms inside with an interested expression. My sight drifted down to his right leg, and then back up at his face.

A surge of confidence rushed up inside my body. I sat up straight and puffed out my chest. Remembering what Sunflora and Loudred did the day before, I placed my right paw over my ruff and stared directly at the forest ahead. After taking a deep breath, I gave myself a quick nod.

"Ahem!" I cleared my throat loudly, startling my partner and drawing his attention. I closed my eyes and said in a commanding voice, "Inside there somewhere is the legendary Panacea! On my honor as a member of Wigglytuff's Guild, I vow to retrieve it and use it to heal my friend!"

"What was that about?" Blue asked as I opened my eyes. I got back onto my feet and turned to face the forest with a smile on my face.

"I'll let you figure out that one on your own," I said with a teasing tone. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Blue tilting his head in confusion. I shook my own head as I stifled a giggle that was threatening to escape my lips.

I looked back at the forest that loomed high above us. With the outer trees growing so close to each other like an impenetrable wall, trying to squeeze in between the tree trunks was an impossibility. I scanned around the sides of the trees, hoping to find a space that was wide enough for Blue and I to pass through.

"Maybe I can bash a hole in this tree with my fists."

I turned around and saw my partner holding his fist against the bark on one of the trees. Sighing, I trotted over to him and pushed his paw down to his side.

"The trees are tougher than stones," I told him, "you'll probably break your bones if you tried."

"Geh... that would be bad."

I shook my head again, "Of course it would! I already told you, I don't want to see you getting hurt anymore while you're with me!"

"Alright, alright. I'm sorry," Blue scratched the back of his head and shrugged, "but it still doesn't really solve our problem of actually entering the forest though."

"Yeah..." I had to agree with him. Even though we were here, we still couldn't find a way inside! What a horrible joke!

"There has to be a way in," Blue said as he folded his arms, "if Duskull and Chatot both directed us here, then that means they've definitely been in there before."

He had a point. Looking up at how high the trees were in the sky, I doubted that even a flying Pokémon like Chatot could just soar up into the air and down into the forest. Duskull, on the other hand, looked like he might be able to squeeze in through the gaps with ease. All of a sudden, an image of a flattened Duskull floated into my mind. I quickly slapped my paws over my mouth to stop an oncoming rush of giggles.

"Do you think Duskull's letter might have a hint or something?" Blue said, "Maybe there's a secret entrance that only he knows about."

"Let me take a look," I coughed and pulled out the letter from my pack. I pored over the loopy handwriting, going over every line and looking for any hints I might've missed.

The first few sentences detailed how to get to here from the crossroads, and the next few talked about what we should be keeping our eyes out for while we were traveling. Then, in the last section, he wrote about what would be inside the forest once we got there, and the directions toward the Panacea.

I narrowed my eyes and focused on the sentences between the second and last sections. There was a gap between his directions. My eyes were a blur as I read over the same lines over and over again in a rapid pace. It reminded me of trying to finish reading a book before Mr. Mime had to close his library. The words on the letter appeared to fly off and leap into my head as my eyes passed over them.

Then, as I went over the last sentence for the tenth time, I found something odd. Right there, in the place where he wrote the name of the forest, there were a few faint lines added next to the word 'Forlorn.' At first, I had thought that it was just a quirk of his fancy handwriting, but the markings were much too clear and distinct to be just a fancy embellishing.

As I held the letter up to the sun, the markings became clearer. A few lines appeared to bleed into view on the left side of the letter F in 'Forlorn.' Slowly, the letter F transformed into an H, while the letter W materialized to its left.

"W...whorlorn?" I muttered, confused. It wasn't a word I recognized. In fact, it didn't seem like a word to me at all. I rotated the letter left and right, hoping that I might find something that will explain it to me.

"What did you find out?" Blue said as he placed a paw on the letter. I shook my head and rotated the letter again.

_Scriip!_

A ghastly noise rang out as I turned the page. My eyes widened as I saw a huge chunk of words just vanish from the letter. Horrified, I pulled the letter away and stared through the hole. The remaining paper scrap was held within Blue's paw, flapping feebly in the wind while he stared at it with an astonished look on his face.

"B – B – Blue!" I gasped, "W – what did you do?!"

"I didn't know you were going to turn the letter!" Blue shot back, waving the scrap around in the air, "It wasn't my fault!"

Shaking my head, I glared at him and shouted, "You shouldn't have grabbed onto it so tightly! Now what are we going to do?"

"It's only a small piece," Blue said as he shoved the piece of paper at me, "just stick it back and we can still read it!"

"Alright, give it here then."

I motioned for him to give me the scrap. But as he was moving his paw over to me, a sudden breeze soared in between us. I let out a yelp of surprise as I saw the paper chunk fly out of Blue's paw.

"No!" I shouted in horror, "Hurry, catch it before it gets carried away!"

Blue and I rushed after the scrap, which was fast approaching the wall of trees that made up the forest. My partner let out a snarl as he leapt forward with his paw outstretched. Unfortunately, right as his paw neared the floating piece of paper, another gust of wind blew by and made the paper scrap dance away from his grasp. It circled around in the air, almost as if it was taunting us, before it slipped into the forest through the tight gaps between the trees.

"Gah!" Blue growled as he tried to chase after the scrap, but the gap was too tight for him to fit his arm through. Disappointed and frustrated, he slammed his fist against the tree, dislodging a few leaves and making them fall from the canopy above.

Sighing, I shook my head and sat down. I held up what was left of Duskull's letter and stared at it with a sad look. A whole third of the letter had just vanished from sight, and with it, a large portion of his directions. I stared at the bottom of the letter, where he had written down the name of the forest. More than half of the name was gone, and all that was left was the word 'Whorl.'

Wait.

'Whorl?'

I felt something click inside my mind. My eyes snapped over to the large knothole present on the tree trunk. I quickly stood back up and rushed over to the tree. My heart was racing now. If the word meant what I think it does... then that means...!

"Aha!" I gave a happy shout as I examined the knothole. There were spiral markings all around the sides of the hole, giving it the appearance of a large, wooden whirlpool. I stood up on my hind legs and gazed into the dark, wooden aperture. To my surprise, it was pretty roomy inside of it. There was just enough space for me to reach a paw inside.

As I groped around inside of the knothole, I felt several old, dried up leaves crunch underneath my prying paw. There must've been an immense amount of debris left inside here, I thought. I wasn't going to get anywhere unless I cleaned it out.

Giving myself a quick nod, I dropped down onto my feet and began to fill my lungs with air. Once I had collected a good amount of air, I reached up and shoved my puffed – up face into the knothole. Then, I exhaled as powerfully as I could.

Leaves, gunk and wood chippings swirled around my face as they tried to escape from the knothole. I squeezed my eyes shut and waited for the small whirlwind I had created to die down.

"Fée?!" I heard Blue's incredulous voice somewhere to my left. I held back the desire to grin at him. I must've looked like I went crazy, sticking my head into holes in trees.

Taking my time to catch my breath, I brushed a few stubborn leaves and chippings off my face. Then, I looked back inside the hole. It was much cleaner now that there weren't quite as many leaves and junk filling up the insides. I took my paw and stuffed it inside the hole again, hoping to find something inside.

My eyes lit up when my paw collided with something hard at the bottom of the knothole. Feeling around it, it seemed to be something small and circular, like a button. Excitement bubbling up inside of me, I patted around inside the hole. To my frustration, my paw just barely fell short of reaching the button. Not to be deterred, I placed my hind legs against the tree's rough bark and tried to scrabble up in a desperate attempt to climb up and give myself more leverage.

All of a sudden, I felt a pair of arms wrap around my midsection. One second later, I was lifted up in to the air, my legs kicking at the wind. I spun my head around with my eyes open wide.

"This should make it easier on you," Blue said with a grin on his face. He adjusted his grip on my belly, making me shiver a little. Blushing furiously, I turned my eyes away from him and went back to my original task. Now that my friend was helping me up into the air, reaching inside the knothole was an easy task. With a triumphant air, I stuck my paw inside the hole and slammed it down on the button.

At first, nothing seemed to happen. We just stood there with eager, awaiting looks on our faces, which quickly transformed into bewilderment. I looked around, wondering if I had done something wrong. Then, right as I thought that, a loud rumbling noise rang out from the tree in front of me.

"Eep!" I yelped as the tree began to shake up and down as if it was about to fall over. Blue tightened his grasp on me and backed us away from the rumbling tower of wood. Leaves began to fall down from the sky in a deluge of green.

Then, the most unbelievable thing happened. Blue and I could only gape in absolute incredulity as the tree began to uproot itself. It rose into the air by it's own power, inch by inch. The tree's thickset roots popped out the ground with incredible force, uplifting the grass around it and sending dirt splattering all over the place. I clung tightly to Blue's shoulders, afraid as to what was going to happen next.

With a loud groan, the tree halted its ascent and froze. It was now hovering a foot above the earth, supported by its powerful roots. Blue continued to carry me as he cautiously walked over to the now – floating tower of wood. Taking a closer look at the base of the tree, I noticed that there was now a sizable tunnel that went underneath the tree's stump. It was just large enough to fit Blue and I, assuming we were crawling.

"You did it, Fée!" Blue said in a cheerful voice, "You found the entrance!"

"E...eh?" I stuttered back. I was still reeling from the incredible event that just happened, but a sudden tightening around my waist snapped me out of my reverie. My face burned up again as I realized that my partner still had his arms wrapped around me. Panicking out of sheer embarrassment, I I wriggled and struggled within his grasp.

"H – hey, careful!" Blue said as I kicked out with my legs. For some reason, he continued to hold me tighter instead of letting go, which only made my cheeks burn even hotter. I let out a little yelp as leaned my upper body forward, intent on slipping out that way.

"Woah!"

"Eek!"

Unfortunately, it didn't work as I had hoped. Instead, Blue lost his balance and sent the two of us toppling forward. I tumbled and rolled like a little furry ball before skidding to a halt in front of the entrance. Groaning, I shook my head and staggered my way back onto my feet.

"Jeez... what was that all about?" I heard Blue groan. I tilted my head around, watching my partner pick himself off the ground out of the corner of my eye. He caught my gaze and shot me a questioning look.

"It's... it's nothing, okay?" I said, turning my red face away from him. Determined to keep my face out of sight, I angled my head down and pointed at the tree, "C – come on, the way is clear. Let's get moving!"

"Are you sure you're alright?" He asked in a worried voice. I shook my head and pointed my tail up in the air.

"I'm fine, completely fine! So let's go!" I shouted back in a voice more forceful than I had intended.

"Well, alright then." Was his reply. He didn't sound all the way convinced, but he shrugged anyway.

Shaking my head for the third time, I strutted up to the base of the tree and peered into the newly – formed tunnel. It was mushy and a little dirty, but I slid through it regardless. To my surprise, when I reached the bottom of the tunnel, I found that it was much roomier than I had imagined. In fact, the tunnel was deep enough for me to stand up fully.

"Geh... it's a little cramped," Blue grumbled as he slid down into the tunnel after me. Glancing back at him, I saw him try to stand up, only to quickly duck back down as his head smacked against the wooden ceiling.

Giggling, I bent my body low and said to him, "Why don't you try crawling? You'll have less of a headache that way."

"I suppose I don't really have a choice..."

Blue let loose a reluctant sigh and dropped down onto his arms. Feeling my prior embarrassment fade, I stifled my giggles and continued my way through the earthy passage with my friend crawling after me. At the other side of the tunnel, I could see a faint, blue glow illuminating the exit.

Excitement was tingling throughout my body as we entered the cool, shady forest. We found ourselves standing within a beautiful wonderland. Trees of all shapes and sizes stretched up around us like great pillars of wood. Long, spindly branches protruded from the sides of the trees, forming complex arches over our heads.

As Blue and I walked through the wood together, I bent down and poked one of the glowing mushrooms beside us. To my delight, the little thing swelled up and released a cloud of shining specks of light into the air. I watched in awe as sparkles danced around in the air, casting a wondrous blue glow around us.

"Incredible...!"

Smiling, I reached up and pawed at one of the sparkles. It stuck onto my fur with ease. I withdrew my paw and held it up to my face, where it continued to glow. It was like I had a bright, shining star within my grasp. I looked over to my right and saw Blue also trying to catch one of the specks. He swept his arms through the air at a high speed, trying to catch as many as he could. Unfortunately, all he managed to accomplish was create a small whirlwind of light around him.

He grumbled as he withdrew his paw. Every sparkle he tried to snag ended up dodging his paw, leaving him speckless. I giggled as he tried again, this time spinning both of his arms like a frantic windmill. After a few seconds of crazed spinning, Blue dropped his paws to his knees, panting. Not a single speck was present on his fur at all.

"Here, Blue," I offered him my little shining dot, "you can have mine."

"Heh..." Blue shook his head as he pushed me away, "you hang on to that. You can light the way with that."

"I have a better idea," I said with a mischievous giggle. I reached up and stuck the speck on his muzzle, making him look like he had a shining nose. "there. Now we have a walking lamp post!"

Blue tweaked his nose, making the little sparkle jitter, "Well, at least you have an easy way to find me if we ever get separated."

After sharing a happy laugh, we decided to leave the sparkling clearing behind and continue our trip deeper into the forest.

* * *

Deep within the forest, a solitary figure peeked out from behind one of the colossal trees. Standing on two black – furred legs, the Pokémon slipped out of her cover and gazed into the forest as she stood in the middle of a clearing. A few minutes had passed since that terrifying rumbling noise had stopped. She clutched the hem of her yellow, skirt – like fur and bit her trembling lip.

She knew the meaning behind that noise. It meant that the great barrier that protected her safe haven had been breached. Fear raced through her body as she realized that foreigners were probably walking around the forest as of this instant.

The Pokémon wandered up to one of the trees around the clearing and wrapped her white arms around it. She closed her eyes and hugged it tight as panicked questions swam through her terrified mind: Who were they? Why did they come here? Are they enemies? What should she do?

"My dear child, what are you doing?"

A sudden gust of wind blew through the clearing, carrying with it an elderly, tired – sounding voice. When she heard the voice speak, the Pokémon dislodged herself from the tree and turned around, a smile forming on her face. There, floating in the center of the forest clearing, was a swirling mass of purple. With tears of relief welling up in her eyes, the Pokémon ran up to the ethereal whirlpool and held her arms out wide.

"Please, dry your eyes. I am here, my little Braixen, there is no need for you to fret."

The purple swirl slowly coalesced into the shape of a tall, wispy – looking specter. A wide brimmed 'hat' adorned the top of the specter's head. While everything below the specter's face was shrouded in a translucent, purple cloak. A trio of red gems gleamed brightly above the cloak, casting a dull, scarlet light around the Pokémon.

The Braixen let out a cry of joy as she rushed up to the specter. She threw her arms around it, pulling the cloaked Pokémon into a happy embrace. The specter returned the gesture by wrapping her cloak around the Braixen's body.

"There, there," the specter said, holding her dear child close, "let it all out. You can tell your old Mismagius everything once you're feeling better."

The Braixen hiccuped and pulled away from her grandmother, wiping her tears away with her white arms. She gazed up at the Mismagius' crooked smile and felt a sense of relief wash over her. With a nod, she held her hands over her chest and closed her eyes. She dredged up her memories from earlier.

The yellow – furred Pokémon was sitting in the middle of the clearing, searching for more fallen leaves to add to her little collection back at home. When all of a sudden, the ground began to tremble while a horrible roar erupted from somewhere within the forest. Terrified, the Braixen could only cower and huddle against a tree until the noise and quake stopped.

"I see..." Mismagius stated with a small shake of her head, "that was a dreadful noise, wasn't it, my dear?"

The Braixen nodded and clasped her hands together over her chest, trembling.

"It's been quite some time since we've had visitors in the forest. I was just as surprised as you were when I felt the barrier lift."

Mismagius floated a few inches up into the air and narrowed her eyes. Not many Pokémon in this world know of this forest in which they called their home, and even less know of the secret to bypassing the natural barricade that protected them from the outside. Only three individuals came to Mismagius' mind as to who could be the culprit. If it was one of the three, why would they return now? Or perhaps... could it be someone other than them?

As she was mulling over the identity of the intruders, she felt a sudden tug at the hem of her cloak. Looking down, she saw her dear child staring up at her with a scared look in her eyes. With a smile, Mismagius floated down and embraced the Braixen to comfort her.

"Be still, my dear Brin..." She whispered into her daughter's ear, "There is nothing for you to fear. For as long as I am still with you, I will not allow anybody to harm you ever again."

As she hugged her precious charge, Mismagius glanced over to the trees behind Brin, her soft, caring expression hardening. In her mind, she sent a single command into the woods.

'Oro, you know what to do.'

A rustle of leaves returned as a reply. With a nod, Mismagius took her cloak and swept it over Brin and herself. One moment later, the two of them had vanished into the shadows.

* * *

As we traveled farther into the forest's depths, it became evident that the trip wasn't going to be a relaxing jaunt. The ground was uneven and rugged. Oftentimes, we found ourselves climbing over fallen logs or ducking under overgrown roots. Not only that, the ground itself proved to be quite difficult to walk on as well. I had to keep my eyes trained on the floor as we walked, I didn't want us to have our feet get caught by stray roots or slip on a patch of moss.

Every few minutes, I couldn't help but sneak a glance back at my partner. While we started our trip walking side – by – side, he ended up lagging behind due to his weakened leg. Whenever I turned around though, Blue would quickly hide his exhausted expression with a grin. Despite that, he couldn't hide how drenched with sweat his brow was, or how ragged his breathing was becoming.

"Blue... let's take a rest." I said.

"Hm? Are you tired, Fée?"

I shook my head, "No, but you..."

"Then let's keep going." He replied with a dismissive wave of his paw.

This exchange repeated several times as we trekked through the forest. Blue was so stubborn. No matter what I said or how I tried to convince him to rest, he would just shake his head and soldier on.

The wall of trees that lined the side of the road appeared to be widening as we continued down this road. I narrowed my eyes as I gazed ahead. There was an unmistakable glint of gold shining in the distance. It must be a beam of sunlight, I assumed. If it was, then it might be a nice place to try and convince Blue to take a rest.

"Blue, I see something shining up ahead," I announced back to him, "it looks like sunlight."

"Really?" Replied Blue, "Do you see anything else?"

"No, just the light."

"Hm... alright."

"Do you want me to go ahead and scout it out?"

Blue shook his head, "No, let's go together. It'll be safer that way."

I nodded at him and stood still, waiting for him to catch up to me. Once he was beside me again, I crawled underneath his right arm and held up his body.

"You don't have t–"

I covered his mouth with my paw and shot him a stern glare. "I might not have to, but I _want_ to. So stuff it and let's go."

Blue let out a muffled sigh and drooped his shoulders down in defeat. He gave me a sideways grin as he shook his head.

"Mmph." He mumbled as he pointed at his mouth, "Mmph mph, mpph."

"Oops..." A little red in the face, I pulled my paw off his mouth. He took a deep breath and sighed.

"Alright," he said again, this time in a much more understandable tone, "let's go, Fée."

Without any more objections from my stubborn partner, we set off toward the shining light ahead. I couldn't help but make a little victorious huffing sound as I helped ease the weight off his injured leg. If only he was this easy to convince all the time!

"What's the matter?" He said, craning his head to give me a curious look.

"Oh... nothing," I replied in a sing – songy voice. The edges of my lips were curling up into a sly smile as I started to hum a little ditty. Blue still had a suspicious look on his face, but he didn't say anything, so I just continued to act as his little singing crutch.

After a few minutes of six – legged walking, we finally reached the place where I saw the shining light. As I expected, the beam of light came from an opening in the canopy above. The wall of trees that had surrounded us before had parted away to form a large, circular clearing around the ray of sunlight.

As we entered the clearing, the first thing I had noticed was that the sunbeam was shining on something odd. In the center of the room stood a single tree, all alone and separated from its brethren. A small circle of made out of rocks surrounded its base like a protective wall.

Despite that it was just a tree, I couldn't help but feel that it looked sad and lonely. Its bark was all torn up and wrinkled, while dark, jagged cracks circled its trunk. There were only two branches worthy of note on the tree, and even then, the branches were gnarled and crooked. It looked as though they would be blown off by a stiff breeze.

"It looks like it'll be pretty warm over there," Blue observed as he pointed at the wizened tree, "we can lean against that tree and take a rest."

While I did hold a few reservations about sitting down next to such a creepy looking thing, I had to admit that the warm sunlight looked really inviting. After our long trek through the cold and dark forest path, I could use a little bit of warming up in the sun.

"Sure thing," I said, "but you're not allowed to go to sleep."

"Eh?" Blue said as we began to walk toward the tree, "Why not?"

"Because," I replied with a shake of my head, "there's no water around here. I haven't figured out a way to rouse you without water yet."

"...am I really that heavy of a sleeper?"

"Yes. Yes you are."

Blue let out a chuckle as he patted me on the head. I responded with a grumble and whapping him in the side with my ears.

As we entered the golden beam of light, I felt myself being enveloped in a wonderful feeling of warmth. I felt a sense of happiness and contentment wash over me as I laid down in the soft grass. I let the sunlight embrace me as I let it slowly thaw out my chilled fur. Blue was wandering around the decrepit tree, eying it with interest. He picked up one of the rocks on the ground and knocked it against its crusty bark.

_Thok, thok..._

It made a dull, echoing noise. It sounded unlike the noise that the other tree made earlier. I glanced up at the tree's flaky exterior, my curiosity was piqued. I wondered, was it a hollow tree? My eyes drifted over to the gnarled branches protruding from the trunk. There were a few leaves remaining on the wood.

If that's the case, then the tree must be alive, right?

Confusion was growing inside of me as I continued to puzzle over the strange tree. Blue walked over to my side and sat down. He threw his rock away into the distance. He must've gotten bored of playing with it. My partner yawned and dropped down to his side, resting his head against this paw. Feeling a little tired as well, I closed my eyes and shoved my curious musings about the tree out of my mind.

_Thok, thok..._

One of my ears flew up in response to that sound. Was Blue knocking against the tree again? Well, it didn't matter if he was still a little curious. I ignored it and let my ear droop down again. The sunlight felt so nice... it made me want to take a little nap...

_Thok, thok..._

Once again, I was jarred out of my reverie by that annoying noise. One of my eyes shot open in frustration. My mouth opened to send Blue an angry retort, but I stopped halfway when I noticed that Blue hadn't moved a single inch since he lied down. One of his paws was underneath his head, and his other was lying at his side. There was no way he would've been able to reach over to knock against the tree.

So then, what was making that noise?

_Thok, thok, thok..._

"Blue..." I whispered, "that's... that's not you... is it?"

My partner didn't respond. Instead, he pushed himself off the ground with his head turned toward the tree. His expression was steely, and his paws were clenched into fist.

"Fée... get behind me, _now._"

His voice sounded so intense and fierce that I felt a chill run down my spine. I didn't want to disobey such a direct command, so I scrambled back onto my feet and tiptoed behind my friend. He gave me a short nod, but he never deviated his sight from the tree.

"What's going on?" I whispered to him, "Did you sense something bad?"

"Yeah," Blue said with a low growl, "we're not alone."

I gulped. I flashed back to when we were running away from the Kabuto swarm back at the beach cave. Blue had said something similar then as well. I took a nervous step back, keeping my eyes peeled for anything dangerous that might spring out from the forest.

_Thok, thok, THOK...!_

Both Blue and I jumped at the sudden noise. It was the same echoing noise, but that last one... it was much louder than before!

"Blue...!" I began to say, but his paw shot across my face and interrupted me. He began to back away from the tree, taking me with him. His lips curled upward, revealing a set of fangs as he growled at the tree. My fur bristled when I saw him wearing such a scary expression. Nervously, I moved my gaze away from him and toward the sunbeam.

_Grrooooaaaa..._

The leaves on the tree began to shudder as a low, droning noise emanated from the trunk. A jolt of fear ran through my spine, sending a tingling sensation through my legs when I heard it. It didn't sound like a natural sound. In fact, it actually sounded like a voice...!

"Who's there?!" Blue demanded, holding up his fist toward the tree.

_Groaaaaaaaar..._

"S – show yourself...!" I stammered.

_Groaaaaaaaar!_

A loud, bestial roaring noise suddenly exploded out from the tree, forcing the two of us to clutch our ears in pain. My eyes widened as the old, ancient – looking tree had somehow uprooted itself out of the ground, and was now standing on its exposed roots. The rocks that had surrounded the base of the tree earlier were sent rolling away by its roots. A loud snapping noise rang out as two jagged lines appeared on the bark. The entire thing then began to tremble and growl.

"Get back, Fée!" Blue shouted at me. Seeing no reason to disagree, we both began to back away from the shuddering tree until we were a fair distance away.

The jagged lines on the tree's bark suddenly expanded into large cracks, separating the trunk into three sizable parts. Black, bubbling shadows filled in the space in between the cracks, while the long, gnarled branches at its side began to grow outward at a ridiculous speed.

"W – what is that thing?!" I shouted, horrified.

The tree bent low and raised up its stump. The many spindly roots that covered its bottom began to entangle and coil around each other, fusing themselves until there were only six, thick leg – like roots left. As it stood on its newly – formed legs, the tree's branches began to expand in size and girth. The bushel of leaves that tipped both branches began to shake as something large began to protrude out from underneath it.

_Groooooooaaar!_

Another ferocious roar exploded out from the tree, sending the leaves flying off its branches. I shielded myself as a wave of green pelted my face. When I opened my eyes again, I let out a shocked gasp. Two, massive pincer – like claws had replaced the bushel of dried leaves!

Another snapping noise rang out, and with it, a long crack appeared on the top section of the tree. Bark and wood chippings fell onto the dirt as the crack spread across in a crescent moon – like shape. Once the last piece fell off, the blackness underneath the tree's bark ebbed away to show a single, glowing red eye.

'Intruders of the forest...'

Blue and I jumped up out of surprise. An eerie, almost feminine – like voice had floated into the clearing. We both scanned around the area with our eyes and ears, trying to find the source of the voice.

'...there is nothing for you here... leave now, and never return...!'

"W – wait!" I ran up and shouted up into the air, "We can't leave, we need to find something important here!"

'...there is nothing for you here...!' A sudden gust of wind came blowing through the forest, making me flinch from the chilly air. Blue replied with an angry snarl as he ran up and threw his arms around me, sheltering me from the cold.

"P – please, listen to me!" I shouted through the raging wind, "We're not invaders, we're explorers! We're just here to find the PanaceaaAAAH!"

The wind intensified as soon as I mentioned the Panacea. I could hardly keep my footing in such a powerful gale. Even with Blue holding onto my body, it took all I had just to remain standing.

'Where did you hear that word...?!' The voice said in a furious tone, whipping up yet another gust of wind. 'There is nothing like that here! Forget your delusions of grandeur and begone! Oro, get rid of them!'

_Groaaaaaar!_ The frightening tree reared back and released a ferocious roar. Its single eye rolled around within the bark before finally coming to a stop on us. It stretched out its long, wooden arms to its side and began to extend and contract its claws.

Blue growled as he let go of my body. He put himself in between me and the beast, holding out his fists and bending low into a fighting pose.

'So... you wont retreat...' The voice spoke again, its tone icy and dripping with disgust, 'Then so be it. Your greed shall spell your end!'

In that instant, the tree launched itself toward us, scuttling at us at a ridiculous speed with its root – like legs. Its middle section rotated as it raised up its right arm, readying itself to attack us with its claw...!

"Too slow!" Blue shouted as he leapt forward and intercepted the claw with his right fist. A loud crashing noise, followed by a series of disturbing cracking sounds exploded out from the impact.

_Groaaaar!_ The tree cried out in shock, or maybe in pain, as Blue's fist pierced right through the center of its claw. With a deft flick of his wrist, Blue pulled his arm out and jumped away. He shook a few stray splinters and leaves off his fur while the tree continued to scream out in agony.

"You're not so tough," Blue said in a cocky tone as he got back into his fighting stance, "now come on. I'll show you just how strong this 'intruder' is!"

The beast howled in fury as it heard Blue's boast. Twitching, It held out its punctured arm to the side, giving me a good look at just how large of a hole Blue had made. All of a sudden, it halted its trembling and became still.

"What is it doing...?" I whispered to Blue.

He didn't even need to answer, as a loud crackling noise did the job for him. I watched in shock as large chunks of wood began to slide into place inside the hole, repairing the damage that Blue had caused.

My partner let out a low growl of discontent as we watched the tree heal itself. "That's a dirty trick," Blue grumbled, "but it doesn't matter." He bent down low and launched himself forward as soon as he finished speaking, "I'll just have to outpace your healing!"

He stamped the ground hard in front of the tree, kicking up several inches of dirt as he landed. Then, with the remaining momentum from his leap, he hurled his fist forward. I watched in anticipation for his heavy blow to connect and to send the tree flying.

…

...but, nothing happened.

There was no crash, no cracking noise or flying trees. Rather, there was only the sound of the wind being cut by Blue's powerful strike.

"Wha...?!" Both Blue and I had the same shocked expressions on our faces as the strange situation began to unfold.

The tree continued to stand tall, unharmed by Blue's punch. My partner stood there with his fist pointed at the ground, a stunned look on his face as he gaped at his arm. Did he miss? Or did the tree somehow managed to dodge his blow? What happened?!

_Groaaaar!_

Another loud roar snapped us out of our confusion. Right as Blue was beginning to recover from his failed attack, a wooden claw came barreling toward him.

"Blue!"

His head turned around just in time to see the tree's arm in front of him, just mere inches away from his muzzle.

"Gaaah!" Blue howled in pain as the tree slammed his claw into Blue's face. I watched, horrified, as my partner was sent sailing through the air like a rag doll.

"No!" Screaming out in horror, I chased after his flying body as fast as I could. Right before his head hit the ground, I leapt up and caught him with my paws. Cradling his crumpled form as we fell together, I shielded him from the fall and slammed into the ground.

"Urgh!" My back cried out in pain as we landed into the dirt. I quickly dismissed their screams of pain and let go of my friend. Blue coughed and rolled out of my grasp, holding onto his head with his paw.

"Are... are you alright, Blue?" I asked, patting him gingerly on the shoulder. He shook his head and coughed again. I let out a quiet yelp of shock as he left a small red stain on the grass.

"I'm... I'm alright," he replied, wiping the remaining red off his mouth. His eyes turned toward the tree as he bared his fangs, "but more importantly... did you see what happened?

"Y – yeah..." I averted my gaze from the grass and nodded hesitantly. At first, I couldn't believe my own eyes, but there was no fooling what I had seen. "Your... your fist just slid right through that thing's body...!"

"Guh..." Blue let out a frustrated growl as he struggled to push himself off the ground, "I didn't want to believe it..." He shook his head and slammed his fists into the ground, using the force from the blow to jump back onto his feet. As soon as he stabilized himself, he began to walk toward the tree again.

"W – wait, where are you going?!" I scrambled back onto my own feet, ignoring the screaming pain in my side, "You can't be thinking of fighting after what it did to you! You can't even hit it!"

He shook his head and lifted his paw. He pointed a finger at the tree's right claw, the claw where he had managed to punch a hole in before.

"It's not completely invincible," he said as he clenched his pointing paw into a fist, "if I managed to strike it once before, then I can do it again!"

"B – Blue, wait!"

My cry of caution was lost in the wind as Blue kicked off the ground, charging toward the enemy once more with his fists ready at his side. The tree released a furious roar in response and rotated its body around, its arms outstretched and its claws extended as if it was about to swat Blue away like a bug.

"Haaah!" Once more, Blue stopped himself at the base of the tree, swinging his fist forward at an insane speed. But, just like before, his fist only cut through the air as it passed through the tree's body as if it wasn't even there.

_Groooaaar! _The tree didn't waste any time in throwing its counterattack at my partner. The heavy claw came swooping down at him like a hammer aimed directly at his head. However, Blue was more prepared this time. As soon as the claw neared his face, he flattened himself against the ground, allowing the hammer – like blow to sail over him.

_Goaah?! _The tree sounded stunned as it was thrown off balance by whiffing its force – filled attack. Blue, on the other hand, sprung up from his lowered position with his fists drawn. With his left arm, he snagged onto the tree's hanging arm and with his right.

"Gotcha!" A smirk appeared on my partner's face. He lifted his other paw and sent it flying straight down.

_Craaaack!_

I cheered as the tree's heavy claw flew off its arm. It spun around in the air for a few seconds before striking the ground and embedding itself into the dirt. Blue quickly leapt off the branch and backed away from the stunned tree.

"So, your invincibility only extends to your body!" Blue shouted at it with a smirk on his face, "That's perfect. I just have to aim at everything around you then!"

The beast stared at its now – declawed arm for a moment. Its single eye had shrunken out of complete and utter surprise. Then, it began to shudder and tremble as its eye started to glow an ominous red color. It reared back its body and unleashed a horrifying, furious screech into the air.

_Gyeeeeeeeeeeeeee–!_

The sound was so loud, so frightening that It felt as thought my ears were going to explode if I continued to listen to it! I ducked down and covered my ears with my paws, trying to my hardest to block out the painful screech. Even Blue was forced to kneel and clutch the sides of his head with his paws.

–_eeeeeeeeeygh!_

Then, right as the scream ended, the tree's body straightened out and it held out its stumped arm. With a single shake of its arm, it began to reform its claw. Blue noticed this and quickly pushed himself off the ground.

"Oh no you don't!" He snarled as he rushed forward, intent on interrupting the tree's regrowth!

He drew his fist back and jumped at the tree's outstretched arm. With a yell of triumph, he struck his paw down in a chopping motion.

_Crack!_ The half – formed claw fell off again, courtesy of Blue's powerful blow. The tree reeled back, its eye spazzing about inside of its crescent – shaped hole. Blue took this opportunity to continue the attack, this time his target was the other arm!

"Haaah!" He struck out with his right arm, slamming it right into the tree's other claw. A huge chunk of wood flew into the air as Blue's blow made its mark, sending splinters and wood chippings scattering all around him. A cry of anguish emanated out of the tree as it lost its other arm to my partner.

Not to be done yet, Blue pulled his arm out of the tree and took a step back. He drew back both of his fists, readying himself for one big, two handed blow!

"Take this!" Blue shouted as he unleashed his final attack. Two powerful fists rocketed toward the tree's vulnerable arm. A nasty crackling noise exploded out from the impact as another massive chunk of wood was sent spiraling away into the air.

_Groa..rr... groaaaa...! _The tree let out a few weak growls of pain as it stumbled away on its root – like legs. Its branches looked like nothing more than little stubs now. It tripped over one of its own roots, falling onto its back and hitting the dirt, hard. As it laid on the ground, it wriggled its stubby arms in a feeble manner, desperate to try and get back up.

"Had enough?" Blue held up his fist as he walked toward the tree. The tree gave him a furious scream in response, making me flinch and cover my ears again. Blue, however, wasn't deterred by the noise and instead broke out into a run.

"Kuh..!?"

But, he didn't even get to take a single step. All of a sudden, his right leg gave out and he went sent tumbling onto the dirt. His face slammed into the grass as he slid across the clearing.

"Gaaaah!" Blue roared out in pain as he rolled over, clutching his right leg. His face contorted as he curled up on the grass, screaming in sheer agony.

"B – Blue!" I charged right on over, throwing myself onto the grass next to him. Without even needing to look, I knew for a fact that he had overextended himself too much this time! Crimson red was beginning to stain the fur on his right leg. His wounds must've opened up from all the running and jumping he was doing earlier!

"H – hang in there, I'll take care of you!" My paws were trembling as I fumbled with the clasp on my Explorer's Pack. He needed medical attention, now! But, as I finally managed to tear open the top of my pack, an earsplitting roar exploded from behind us.

_Gyeeeeeeaaaagh!_

The tree had recovered. I could only watch in horror as it began to encroach upon us, its arms regrown and its claws pointed right at my face.

"F – Fée..." Blue gasped out as he grasped my leg. He looked at me with a pained expression on his face. "R – run...! Run away...!"

He was telling me to abandon him, to leave him behind and save myself?! No! I wont! I can't!

"Shut up!" I screamed back at him. I threw my pack on the ground and shoved an Oran Berry into his paws, "I wont leave you behind!"

"Fé...Fée!"

Turning away from his stunned and angry face, I stood up and faced the angry tree beast. I curled up my lips and revealed to it my teeth. My fangs may not be as sharp as my partner's, but even then...! Even then...!

"I wont let you hurt my frieeeeeend!" I let out a bestial howl as I charged forward. As expected, my head and my body slipped right through the trunk as if there wasn't anything there at all. I skidded to a stop as I flew through to the other side. The tree rotated its three sections, turning its eye and arms around to face me.

"Like Blue said... your center is invincible," I muttered as I stared down my enemy, "but why...? Why are you invincible there...?"

My mind worked at a frantic pace, trying to figure out the reason behind the tree's invulnerability. A memory resurfaced within my head.

_Thok... thok..._

I remembered Blue knocking against the tree's trunk earlier... how did he do it? My eyes darted around the clearing, and my gaze fell upon one of the small rocks that had surrounded the tree earlier. He had rapped against the tree with the rock in his paw... does that mean the tree can be touched with the rock?

"Fée...! It's coming...!"

At Blue's warning, I snapped out of my thoughts just in time to see the tree swinging its claws at me. I ducked just like Blue did before, allowing the heavy claw to swipe at the air above my head. Taking this chance, I crawled away from the tree while it was recovering and scrambled over to one of the rocks.

It was just a simple, nondescript stone. Having been under the sun for so long, the surface of the rock had been bleached a shiny white. In a hurry, I opened my mouth and bit down on it. A sense of disgust rose up within my gut as my tongue tasted the dirt under the rock.

"What... what are you doing?!" I heard Blue gasp out in the distance. Ignoring him, I turned around and faced the tree with my teeth clenched down tight on the rock.

The tree was scuttling toward me with its rooty legs, its claws drawn back and ready to swipe at me. My jaw felt sore and pained as I held the heavy thing up in my mouth, but I couldn't let it distract me now! Steeling my resolve, I leaned my head back and spun around on the spot. Right as I faced the tree again, I released the rock and hurled it toward the charging beast.

_Thunk!_

It was a direct hit! The rock struck the tree right in its midsection, stopping its advance and making it double over from the blow. It released a shocked and hurt cry as its claws clutched its body. Its eye was spinning like mad. I pawed at my mouth, trying to brush away the dirt and soothe the aching feeling from biting down on the rock for so long. I felt the edges of my lips curl up into a smile.

This thing wasn't invincible at all! Even if we can't touch it with our paws or fists, we could still hurt it! Confidence and enthusiasm was beginning to build up inside of me as I ran over to the next rock on the ground. Picking it up, I turned my gaze back to the tree.

_Groaaaar!_ It released another furious roar and rushed at me, its claws swiping at the air. As I held on to the second rock, I waited for a moment this time before lobbing it. I took my time to aim my next attack, to get the rock through his claws and hit his body. I watched the movement of his arms and his claws, scanning and observing for the precise moment to unleash my attack...!

_There! _I spun around again and used the momentum to hurl the rock at the tree. The white stone spun as it sailed through the air. The tree noticed my missile and tried to knock it away with his claws, but I had thrown it higher than it expected. The stone went over his guard and collided squarely onto his top section, or more specifically, right in his glowing eye!

_Gyeeeeeeeegh!_

A loud, injured screech rang out as it doubled back. It stumbled around the clearing, swiping at the air with one of its claws while the other claws was held over its face. The rock had embedded itself within the opening on its 'face,' blinding it and hopefully hurting it at the same time.

Taking this chance, I rushed over to my partner, who was still lying on the ground trying to catch his breath. As I reached his body, I noticed that he had tried to take a bite out of the Oran Berry I left him earlier, but it didn't work. A chunk of berry was lying at his side, uneaten and covered in dirt. I took a quick glance at the tree. It was still rampaging around at the other side of the clearing, and still distracted.

Nodding, I took the Oran Berry out of Blue's paws and held it over his mouth. "Open up your mouth, I'll feed it to you."

He gave me a small nod and opened his mouth obediently. With a grunt of exertion, I squeezed the berry and let the juice dribble down my paw and into his open maw. He coughed and spluttered as he tried to down the healing salve, sending some of the blue – colored liquid splattering onto my face. Once the Oran Berry was drained, I threw it away and cradled the back of his head, helping him swallow the rest of the juice that was still in his mouth.

"Fée... are... are you alright...?" He struggled to say in between heavy gasps.

"That's something I should be asking!" I shot back at him, giving his head a hug. He was such a stubborn idiot! "You should be worried about yourself!"

"He...heh..." He let out a strained chuckle as he shook his head, brushing his muzzle against my ruff, "I... I'm fine... heh..."

"Idiot..." I couldn't help but grin at his how obstinate he was. Even though he was in so much pain, he was still trying to say these things...

_Groaaaar!_

I quickly turned my head away from my partner. The tree had managed to dislodge the rock from its eye socket and was now glaring at me with fury burning in its single eye. I gently let go of Blue and laid him onto the grass.

"Fée... don't... get hurt..."

I gave my partner a nod and faced the tree with a look of confidence on my face. I patted the ribbon on my right ear and took a deep breath. A white hot flame was burning within my chest. I felt courage course throughout my body like wildfire, making me feel stronger than ever.

"Believe in me!" I told Blue as I took a step forward, "I'm your partner... and I'll protect you!"


	22. I just think you two look pretty cute

**• ****  
Chapter 21:**

**"I just think you two look pretty cute.**"

A frown spread on Mismagius' face as the battle continued to rage on beneath her. The intruders were much more resilient than she had anticipated. It was unbelievable to her that Oro, her most trusted guardian of the forest, was being driven back by the efforts of one lone Eevee. Mismagius could only watch in frustration as the little brown Pokémon continued to dodge the Trevenant's desperate swipes while retaliating by hurling more rocks and stones.

Mismagius couldn't help but feel a little admiration for the Eevee's ingenuity. To think that the intruder would circumvent Oro's natural immunity to direct attacks by attacking him with rocks instead... it made Mismagius a little impressed.

However, no matter how smart or clever that Eevee was, she and her injured friend are still invaders of their sanctuary. Mismagius didn't know why they're here or how they knew about their forest, but such issues were of little concern to her. To Mismagius, her most important task was to protect the forest, and her precious daughter that lives within it.

But, as she watched Oro be driven back by the Eevee's onslaught, Mismagius began to feel a sense of worry and concern for her guardian. Despite his best efforts, it was becoming painfully obvious that he could not last much longer against the intruder's ferocity...

* * *

_Gyeeeeeh!_

Oro let out another pained screech as yet another heavy stone struck him in the midsection. The force from the blow sent him toppling backward, his root – like legs groaning and creaking from the strain of supporting his weight. The Trevenant swung his arms like windmills as he tried to regain his balance, but his efforts to right himself were wasted as another rock smashed into his face.

With a loud, rattling cry, Oro collapsed at the center of the clearing with a weighty thud. His arms laid at his sides, limp and unmoving. His single eye spun around in its wooden socket while his legs kicked feebly into the air. Dull pain ravaged the ancient tree as he stared up into the golden light. Scattered all around his fallen form were bits and pieces of his wooden body, as well as several of his snapped off claws, courtesy of that accursed Riolu. Even though Oro managed to incapacitate one of them, the other was fighting back with a furor that sent a chill through his body.

Frustration, anger and shame filled Oro's heart as he clawed the grass. He was the guardian of the forest, the sole protector of the wood...! How could he be defeated by a pair of brats like them?! He wont accept this outcome... he can't accept it!

Mustering what strength he had left within his decrepit body, the Trevenant unleashed an echoing howl into the sky. His right arm stretched up into the warm light, followed by his left. No matter what happens to him, he had to complete his duty. The forest was his home and his family! And he was their protector!

As he stared up into the sky, he saw a purple haze hovering just a few feet above the clearing. Oro's eye began to glow brighter as he realized that Mismagius must be watching his battle unfold from above them. Being aware of her presence granted even more untold strength. Mismagius, his beloved Mismagius...!

He couldn't give up. Not now, not ever...!

_Groaaaaaaaaaaaaaar!_

The Trevenant slammed his arms into the grass, sending dirt and leaves flying away. His body released a horrifying cracking noise as he contorted his body in order to get back onto his feet. Even more jagged cracks appeared on his trunk as he straightened himself back out. Pain shot through his body, flooding him with the desire to scream and cry out in agony. But he withstood it. For the sake of his caretaker, for the sake of his family!

"I can't believe it, he's still standing?!"

The little Eevee looked aghast as Oro staggered toward her. His single eye glowed with determination as he glared at the horrified Eevee. Her brown head was sweeping left and right in a mad attempt to find another rock to use as a projectile, but her luck had ran out. There were no more rocks anywhere close enough for her to just pick up and throw in such short notice.

Oro only had enough strength left for one more attack. The Eevee looked like she was about to run away and grab a faraway rock to throw at him. He cannot let that happen...!

_Gyeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh!_

"Eeek!"

He unleashed the loudest screech he could muster. The Eevee was stunned in the middle of her run, forcing her down onto the ground in order to clutch her ears to protect herself from the noise. This was his chance, he can't let it go to waste now!

_Groaaar!_

With a roar of triumph, Oro rushed forward on his six legs with both of his claws raised up into the air. The Eevee's eyes opened in fear as she saw the massive tree encroach upon her. There was no way she could escape the Trevenant's attack in time, not when he was already that close! She shut her eyes and covered her head with her paws.

"Fée!"

_Crack!_

All of a sudden Oro found himself wracked with awful, awful pain. He found himself flung away from the cowering Eevee, feeling much lighter than before. The Trevenant glanced down at his claws, or rather, the stumps where his claws once were. As he stumbled away, filled with agonizing pain, he saw that accursed Riolu standing in between him and the Eevee.

The Riolu was holding a paw against his chest as he gasped for breath. He could barely open his eyes, and his right leg was covered in red. In his other paw, he held something large, something familiar...

Oro let out a low growl as he recognized that object. It was one of his claws, one of his own wooden claws that the Riolu had snapped off earlier.

"B – Blue!" Fée cried out in a joyous voice, "Y – you're alright!"

"Stay behind... behind me...!" The Riolu – Blue – gasped out. His eyes were wincing and his stance was unsteady. He looked as though he could fall over at any time.

The Riolu glared back at the Trevenant with the massive wooden claw in his clutches. Despite his horrendous injuries, Blue's eyes were defiant and undaunted. Affected by the forceful presence the Riolu was emanating, Oro couldn't help but take a single step back, away from the Riolu's fierce gaze.

A strange sense of familiarity flooded the Trevenant's being as he watched the Riolu stalk ever closer to him. He was fighting for his friend, he was even willing to sacrifice his own well – being for the sake of protecting her. Even though he was injured, even though he was on the last breath before collapsing, he continued to fight. Even though they were enemies, Oro couldn't help but feel a grudging sense of respect for his opponent. That Riolu was fighting for the same reason as he was.

That last attack he made took everything he had, leaving him with nothing left. Oro had no claws, nor did he even have the strength to lift his arms. Even though his heart could still fight, his body couldn't respond in kind. His body slumped forward, ready to accept defeat as his eye began to dull in color. The last thing he saw before his vision faded was the sight of his opponent raising his own claw into the air...

* * *

_Fwoosh!_

All of a sudden, a gust of wind exploded in between Blue and the Trevenant. Blue let out a loud yell of surprise as he was sent tumbling away, dropping the claw and falling onto the grass. He groaned as he doubled over, clutching his right leg with a look of agony on his face. As the abrupt gale dissipated, it left behind something new and unexpected in their midst.

Standing in front of the fallen Trevenant now was a Pokémon covered in golden – yellow fur. She held out her arms to her side, separating the Riolu from Oro. Her eyes welled up with tears as she glared at Blue in defiance. She held a short twig in her right hand. Trembling, she pointed her weapon at the Riolu's face in a desperate attempt to threaten him. Brin opened and closed her mouth, but no words came out.

"Where... how..." Blue attempted to speak to Brin, but his words were cut short by an onslaught of painful coughs. He dropped to his knees, clutching his chest while gasping for air in an effort to alleviate his pain.

"Blue!" His partner rushed up to his side and threw her paws around him. Fée turned her head toward Brin, her eyes tearing up.

"Please, just let us go!" She pleaded at the Braixen, "He's badly injured, and he needs rest! We don't want to fight you!"

Brin's face was filled with uncertainty as she stared at the crying Eevee. At first, she had rushed out of hiding in order to protect Oro, but now, she didn't know what to do. Oro, on the other hand, couldn't even move. He tried to lift his broken arms in an attempt to cover Brin, but they just hung at his side, unmoving and lifeless.

"Please... we just want to find the Panacea..." Fée cried as she held her partner's trembling body, "We never meant to intrude or hurt anybody, we just wanted to find a cure!"

When the Eevee uttered the word 'Panacea,' Brin's eyes flew wide and she dropped her twig. She backed up against Oro's broken body, shocked at what the Eevee said. What did that Eevee know?! How did she know?! She shook her head left and right in a panic. She wanted to run away, to hide herself away from the two strangers. But she couldn't just abandon her friend! She clung against Oro's trunk, her eyes fearful and her body trembling as she watched the Eevee and the Riolu.

"...Eevee."

All of a sudden, a great mass of purple appeared above and in between the two injured parties, making the Eevee and the Braixen both look upward. Brin let out a short cry of joy as her mother's long cloak materialized into view, followed by her large, pointed hat. Mismagius floated down from the air and stared at the shivering brown and blue pair on the grass.

"Brin, stay behind me." She spoke in a commanding voice at the Braixen, who quickly nodded and ducked behind her mother's cloak.

"You... you're that voice from before...!" Fée said in a timid voice.

The Mismagius turned around and stared at the trembling pair with her head tilted up in a haughty manner. "That's correct. I was the one who warned you about intruding upon our sanctuary earlier." With a swish of her cloak, Mismagius covered her mouth and spoke in an ethereal voice, 'I am Mismagius, caretaker and guardian of the Forlorn Forest.'

The cloaked Pokémon pointed at the Eevee and the Riolu with a stern expression on her face, "You brought this misery upon yourselves by disregarding my warnings. If you had simply acquiesced to my request and left, then you could've avoided this."

"T – that's..." Fée stared back at the floating Pokémon and shook her head, "No... we can't leave. We couldn't! There was a reason we came here, and we couldn't just leave without fulfilling it!"

"...by reason, you mean you came to find the Panacea...?"

The Eevee nodded furiously, staring right at Mismagius. She held up her friend and gestured toward his right leg with her paw. As Mismagius looked down at the injured Riolu, her eyes widened at the sight of the horrendous scars present on his leg. Brin tried to peek past Mismagius to get a look as well, but Mismagius expanded her cloak and blocked her from seeing the terrible wounds.

"...that wound..." Mismagius murmured. She took a quick glance backward at Brin, who was staring up at her with a confused and expectant look on her face. Mismagius shook her head and covered her face with her cloak.

This wasn't the first time Mismagius had seen such a wound. A sense of deja vu washed over the cloaked Pokémon as she gazed down at the trembling pair on the ground. The sight of those two... it jarred a certain memory within the cloaked Pokémon. A similar situation, just like this, had happened here in the past.

Mismagius took another look at her daughter before releasing a deep sigh. A cold gust of wind flitted through the clearing, making Brin and the intruding pair shudder slightly. Mismagius returned her gaze to the Eevee and the Riolu, her head held up high and her eyes steely. Even though this situation gave her a sense of deja vu, there was no telling if these two are trustworthy or not.

"Eevee," Mismagius spoke in a low voice, making Fée jump with a start, "answer my question. From whom did you hear about the existence of this forest?"

"From whom...?" Fée echoed, looking a little uncertain. She glanced around the clearing for a moment, wearing a nervous expression on her face. Then, her eyes locked on to something brown in the distance. Carefully, she let go of her partner and laid him onto the grass before walking over to her dropped Explorer's Pack, with Mismagius watching her with a suspicious eye the whole time.

Fée pulled open the pack and rummaged around inside of it. She pulled out a single Oran Berry and put it inside her mouth. Then, she retrieved a torn and ragged – looking letter from the pack. Turning around, she trotted back to the group.

"Here, this is the letter we were given that told us about this forest," Fée said, holding the letter up in her paws. Mismagius hovered over and took the letter away with her cloak and began to read it. While Mismagius was busy mulling over the letter, Fée turned toward the ragged Blue and began to peel away the little Oran Berry for him.

"This handwriting..."

Mismagius' eyes widened as she recognized the delicate, fancy script on the letter. The long, swirling lines, the neatly written letters, and the faint scent of freshly – baked bread... there was little doubt in her mind. This letter was indeed the work of an old, beloved friend. A warm sense of nostalgia flooded her body, making her feel excited for an unexplainable reason. Mismagius held the letter close to her chest as her eyes slowly fluttered to a close.

Fond memories resurfaced within her heart as she reminisced about the days she had spent with her old friend back in the forest. Those were days of endless fun and bliss. Days that she wished could go on forever...

All of a sudden, Mismagius felt someone tugging at the hem of her cloak. Her eyes flew open in surprise and she gazed down. Brin was staring up at her, holding onto her cloak with a worried look on her face. Mismagius' cheeks deepened in color as she turned around and saw the Eevee and the Riolu both staring at her with curious looks on their faces.

"Ahem..." Mismagius quickly covered up her face with her cloak and cleared her throat, wiping away the faint blush on her face. She lowered herself and returned the letter to Fée, albeit a little reluctantly. She could only watch with yearning as the Eevee tucked the letter back inside her pack.

"Eevee... where did you get that letter...?" Mismagius asked in the most detached voice she could manage.

"A Pokémon by the name of Duskull handed it to us," Fée explained, "our Guildmaster told us to visit him for information about the Panacea, and he gave us the directions to this forest through that letter."

"Duskull..." Mismagius felt a pang of emotion inside her heart when she heard Fée utter that name, "I... I see..." She covered up her face again and turned away from the Eevee, "T – that would explain how you knew about the entrance into the forest... yes..."

Fée's head tilted to the side as she took in the Mismagius' odd reaction. Her curiosity began to grow as her mind began to connect the dots between Mismagius and Duskull.

"Mismagius...?" Fée took a step forward. "Do you... do you know Duskull, by any chance?"

Mismagius shook her head and turned around to face Fée again. To the Eevee's surprise, a small smile was present on the cloaked Pokémon's face. With a swish of her cloak, Mismagius conjured up a small gust of wind to blow through the clearing, filling the air with the sound of rusting leaves.

"I do," Mismagius said as the gale died down, "or rather, I did." Seeing the confusion on the Eevee's face, Mismagius shook her head and changed the subject. "Since he was the one who brought you here... I suppose that means he believes the two of you are deserving of my trust."

"You said the two of you are explorers, did you not?" Mismagius asked, pointing at Fée and Blue.

"Y – yes," Fée replied with a fervent nod of her head, "we're not intruders or invaders. We're just explorers from Wigglytuff's Guild, Mismagius."

"Wigglytuff's?" Mismagius echoed with a surprised expression on her face. She covered up her mouth with her cloak and mulled over Fée's words for a moment before giving the Eevee a little nod. "I see. That clears up the situation even more then."

"Huh?"

Mismagius shook her head and gave a light chuckle, surprising Fée and Brin. The Braixen looked up at her caretaker, wondering why she looked so cordial all of a sudden. Mismagius didn't answer, instead, she hovered past the confused Braixen and held her cloak against the unconscious Trevenant's body. The cloaked Pokémon closed her eyes and spoke in a soft voice.

"Oro, my dear guardian... take your rest. I have witnessed your bravery, and I'm proud of you. For now, sleep and regain your strength." She leaned her head against the fallen tree's body in an affectionate gesture. "Once you reawaken, return to the dwelling. I will make sure to tend to your wounds."

Although the Trevenant remained silent and unmoving, a slight rustling of leaves from the forest returned as Oro's reply. Mismagius gave a small nod and turned around to face the other three Pokémon.

"Brin," The Braixen jumped up with a start as Mismagius patted her on the shoulder with her cloak. She looked up, bewildered, and saw her mother looking at her with a small smile on her face. Mismagius leaned down and wiped away the tears on the Braixen's face and said, "Do not cry anymore, my dear. I have a task for you."

Brin tilted her head to the side, wondering what her mother wanted from her. Mismagius floated away from Brin and pointed at the Eevee and the Riolu in the distance.

"I want you to bring those two over to our abode."

Brin's mouth opened wide. It seemed like she wanted to scream, but no sound came from her mouth. She tugged at the hem of Mismagius' cloak, shaking her head left and right in a frantic attempt to try and dissuade her. Unfortunately, Mismagius replied with another amused chuckle and pulled her cloak away from the Braixen's hands

"It will be fine, my dear," Mismagius spoke with a certain amusement in her voice. Seeing that the Braixen wasn't convinced, Mismagius floated back down and wrapped her cloak around her daughter, pulling her into an affectionate embrace, "I'll still be watching over you, like always. So please, don't be afraid."

Brin shook her head while within her mother's hug. She looked up at Mismagius' face, her eyes full of worry and panic. Her expression screamed at Mismagius to don't leave and to please stay.

"I know you're worried, my little Brin," Mismagius stated once more as she let go of the Braixen, "but I would like you to experience something new, something without me around." Mismagius watched as Brin continued to shake her head and try to grab her cloak again. With a small sigh, Mismagius turned toward the explorer pair.

"Eevee," she said, making Fée jump with a start.

"W – what is it?" Fée replied, looking just as surprised and confused as Brin.

"You are searching for the Panacea, are you not?"

"That's right," Fée said with a nod.

"Then I would like you to take care of my daughter for me," Mismagius said as she gestured toward the trembling Brin. "I'd also like to add that..." Mismagius chuckled as she covered her mouth with her cloak, "...it would be in your best interests to keep her safe for the time being, mm?"

"E – eh?!" Fée glanced over to Brin, "You want us to take care of her?"

"Is that a problem, Eevee?" Mismagius asked, her eyes narrowing, "I'd like to remind you that Brin is my precious daughter. I will not be pleased if anything happens to her. You understand?"

Fée gulped and nodded.

"Good." Mismagius hovered further up into the air and spun around, releasing several wisps of purple mist out from under her cloak, "Brin will take you to our home. Once you arrive, we can discuss more about the Panacea. Farewell."

"H – hold on!"

Leaving more questions behind than answers, Mismagius released a low chuckle and vanished within a puff of purple mist. Fée, and Brin stood stock still in the middle of the clearing, gaping at the slowly dissipating fog in the air. With a startled cry, Brin ran toward the dissipating purple and tried to grab it with her hands. A despondent whimper escaped her lips as she saw the gas flit through her fingers.

"H – hey..." Fée tried to address the Braixen, "Are you alright?"

The Braixen turned around. As she saw the Eevee approaching her, she let out a muted squeak and rushed behind the sleeping Oro. She peeked out from behind the tree, her hands and face trembling out of fear and apprehension as she stared at Fée.

Fée took a nervous step backward, not wanting to startle the timid Braixen any more than she already had. As she backed up, a low chuckle rang out from behind her, startling Fée and making both girls turn their heads toward the sound. The laughter had come from Blue. He sat up from the ground and covered his mouth, stifling his chuckles.

"Blue!" Fée shouted out in relief. She rushed over to the Riolu's side and threw her paws around his neck, pulling him into a tight squeeze.

"G – gah, hold on Fée!" He choked, trying to push the enthusiastic Eevee away from him, "I'm not fully recovered ye – guh!"

"O – oh!" Fée made a little embarrassed yelp and let go of Blue, who leaned forward to try and catch his breath. After a moment of frantic panting, he shook his head and sighed.

"You need to learn your own strength, Fée," he scolded the Eevee in a playful tone of voice, "you're going to hurt someone with those hugs one day."

"I – I'm sorry," she replied, blushing a little. "I was just relieved that you're okay, Blue."

"Of course I'm alright," Blue smiled at his partner. He reached over and fluffed the fur on her head, "there's no need for you to worry. I'll be fine."

Fée frowned and shook her head, "I'll believe that when you're completely cured." She pulled her partner in for another hug, but gentler this time. "I'm just glad that you're safe, Blue."

"That's my line," Blue chuckled as he patted Fée's back, "you did pretty well out there, fighting off that tree on your own. I'm proud of you, Fée."

"O – oh, that was... I just kinda... well, I mean it was nothing, really..." Fée stammered, a little surprised at his praise. Despite her insistence, her tail began to wag left and right in delight.

"S – so, what were you laughing about?" Fée said as she sat down, trying to stop her tail. "What was so funny?"

Blue shrugged and turned his gaze over to the Braixen peeking out from behind the tree, "It's nothing, really." He pointed at Brin with his paw, startling her, "She just reminded me a little of you, Fée."

"Reminded you? How so?"

"It's the way you both run and hide behind things when you're scared or embarrassed," Blue remarked with a big smile, "I just think you two look pretty cute."

Both girls blushed bright pink at the Riolu's nonchalant remark. Fée's mouth hung wide open in shock while Brin covered up her face with her hands, trying to hide her embarrassment.

"What's the matter?" Blue looked confused as he stared at his partner and the yellow – furred Braixen, "Did I say something wrong?"

"B – Blue..." Fée shook her head as she nudged him in the side, "You... you really should learn to watch what you say..."

Blue frowned as he tilted his head to the side. He didn't quite understand what his partner meant by that.

* * *

After I had recovered from Blue's callous remark, I let out a deep sigh and shook my head. I closed my eyes and rubbed my face with my paws, trying to lower the rising temperature in my cheeks. I grumbled inwardly as I tried to forget what he just said. Why does he have such a knack for making me feel this way all the time? It's was so embarrassing... especially since he said it to that other Pokémon as well.

I shook my head again. I didn't want to dwell on what my partner said too much, otherwise all this heat on my face might make me evolve into a Flareon! I opened my eyes again and looked toward the sleeping tree Pokémon.

It felt so strange to me. Just a few moments ago, we were locked in a heated battle with each other. And now, it was snoozing away in peace just a few feet away from Blue and I. Though, I am glad that the fighting was stopped. My jaw still ached from biting and throwing all those rocks, and my muscles were begging me to give them some rest.

My eyes drifted over to the patch of yellow that was hiding behind the tree. It was another Pokémon that I've never seen before. I felt my mouth curl up into a small smile. Ever since I've become an explorer, it seems like I've been meeting all sorts of new and unknown Pokémon lately. Well, I suppose that's not really a bad thing, I mused.

"H – hey..." I took a cautious step toward the Pokémon, "your name... it's Brin, right?"

The Pokémon – Brin – peeked out from behind the tree and looked at me. Her eyes were a bright, vibrant orange. For some reason, it reminded me a little of Blue's eyes. Maybe it was because they were so similar in color, albeit hers was a little brighter in shade. I took another step forward, trying to close the distance between us.

She opened her mouth and made a quiet sound. I couldn't quite make out what she said, but it didn't seem like she was too bothered by my presence.

"Um... I'm sorry for what happened earlier," I said, glancing over to the sleeping tree, "it was all a big misunderstanding. We never meant to hurt your friend. Oro, was it?"

I bowed my head low in a show of apology. I didn't want Brin to continue thinking that we were her enemies. When I lifted up my head, I saw Brin continue to peek out at me from behind Oro. But I noticed that she was beginning to reveal more and more of herself. So maybe she was starting to trust me? I lifted up my paw at her – as slowly as I could so she wouldn't be startled – and put on a friendly smile.

"My name is Fée," I said, holding out my paw to her, "and that guy back there is called Blue. We're partners, exploration partners, that is."

Brin looked a little apprehensive at first. I watched as she stared at my paw, then at me, and then finally at Blue. Her face turned a little pink as she saw my partner. I sighed and shook my head. Maybe she was still affected by his careless remark from earlier.

"Don't worry about him," I said, drawing her attention away from him, "he's a little strange, but he's a nice guy."

"Hey, what is that supposed to mean?"

"It's alright, we just want to be friends." I said to Brin, ignoring Blue's indignant remark. I gestured toward her with my outstretched paw, "I promise."

Another silent moment passed as she stared at my paw without speaking a word. Then, to my relief and delight, Brin nodded her head and began to move out from behind Oro, revealing her full body.

When I first saw her, my first thought was that she was pretty tall. Taller than Blue, even. Her fur was a very flattering shade of white and yellow, while her legs were colored a sleek black, just like Blue's. As she walked toward me, I noticed a large tail behind her, swaying left and right like the bristles of a broomstick.

I gave her a big smile when she finally stopped in front of me. I held up my paw a little higher for her. Although she still looked a little apprehensive, she eventually decided to extend her hand out to me. With my smile still on my face, I took her hand and shook it.

"It's nice to meet you, Brin." I said in a cheerful voice as I beamed at her. It made me a very happy to see her mouth curl up into a smile as well. I held her hand with both of my paws and shook it up and down with enthusiasm.

"You're going to pull her arm off, Fée." A blue paw rested itself on top of ours. I looked up and saw Blue grinning at Brin. He took her hand in his paw and shook it, "How's it going? I'm Blue."

Her face turned pink again as she looked up at my partner. She had a strange, anxious look on her face while she shook her head left and right. Her mouth continued to open and close frantically as she tried to pull her hand out of his grasp, but couldn't quite escape his firm grasp. Blue looked bewildered as she made pitiful noises at him.

"H – hey, calm down," Blue said in a confused voice, "I'm not going to hurt you or anything. I'm sorry I hurt your friend, if that's what you're worried abou – whoa, careful!"

All of a sudden, Brin's struggles bore fruit and she slipped out of Blue's hold. But, she had pulled so hard that when they separated, she lost her balance and fell backward. I cried out in surprise and tried to catch her.

"Gotcha!"

Blue reacted much faster than I had, to my surprise. My partner rushed forward and wrapped his arms around Brin's waist and stopped her from hitting the ground. I let out a sigh of relief as Blue pulled her back onto her feet.

"There, you alright?" Blue said, looking up at her with a concerned expression. Brin didn't reply. Instead, the pink spots on her cheeks had turned into a full – blown red blush.

At first, I didn't understand why she was blushing so hard, but as I looked down, I realized that Blue was still holding onto her, making sure she wasn't about to fall over again. The height difference between the two made it so that Blue's head only reached halfway up her body, so his muzzle was planted right in the middle of her belly.

I felt a little twinge of annoyance inside me somewhere when I saw that. Fuming a little for some reason I couldn't comprehend, I walked up and wedged my paws in between them. I pulled Blue's arms away from Brin and separated the two. Brin stumbled backward a few paces before rushing behind Oro again. Her face was a bright, glowing red as she peeked out at us. Meanwhile, Blue stared at me with a confused expression on his face.

"Th – that's enough of that," I stuttered as I averted my gaze from his face, "we should get going. W – we don't want to keep Mismagius waiting, do we?"

"What's the matter, Fée?" Blue asked, looking a little bewildered at me, "Your face looks a little red." He prodded me on the cheek with his paw, "What are you so angry about?"

"It's nothing! I'm fine!" My voice came out a lot louder than I intended. I saw Blue's eyes widen and Brin duck back behind Oro in fear. I cleared my throat and walked over to Blue and nudged him in the side. "C – come on, let's get moving..."

I saw Blue glance down at me, then he turned to look at Brin. With a loud sigh, he shrugged and placed his paw on my head.

"I just don't understand you sometimes," Blue chuckled as he fluffed the fur on my head again, "but alright. Let's get moving."

"Mmmh..." I grumbled as he took his paw off my head to head toward Brin. A strange emotion kept fumbling around inside my heart as I watched him convince her to come out from behind the tree. He held out his paw and took Brin's hand and gently coaxed her out of hiding. Her face was still a bright red, and she continued to avert her eyes from Blue.

"You know, the two of you are really similar." Blue commented as he let go of Brin's hand. He sniffed and shrugged his shoulders. "That red blush on both of your faces, it's pretty much identical."

Brin and I glanced at each other. A small smile cracked on my face as our eyes met. Blue was right, it was like looking in a mirror, in a way. Both of our faces, her white cheeks and my brown, were tinged with a shade of red. I giggled at this strange sight. Even Brin couldn't help but titter at how odd we looked.

"S – shut up," I mumbled at Blue. I hid my growing grin as I whapped him with my tail, "this is all your fault anyway..."

"Huh? What did I do?" Blue glanced at me with a curious look on his face. I shook my head and gave him a sharp slap on the paw with mine. This guy... he can be so oblivious at times. I could feel that odd, frustrating emotion from earlier fading away as I continued to giggle at my confused friend.

What was there to be annoyed about? Blue's Blue. Even if he could be a little bit silly, or frustrating, or even annoying, it's just how he is.

"It's nothing," I said with a lightened air. I walked over to Brin and held out my paw again, "I'm sorry about earlier. Do you mind taking us to Mismagius now?"

Brin shook her head with a smile. The red blush on her face was fading now, returning her cheeks back to its original white color. She took my paw in her hand and shook it. We stole a glance at Blue, who was still standing beside us and scratching his head in bewilderment. Together, we burst out in a fit of giggles at his silly expression.

"Now what?" Blue grumbled as he folded his arms, "What am I missing here?"

I walked up to my partner and threw my paws around him, giving him a big, reassuring hug. "It's nothing at all, Blue!"

* * *

Having Brin with us made traveling through the forest a much more interesting journey. Instead of taking the straight road Blue and I used, the yellow – white Pokémon lead us through the sea of trees itself, going through and around the massive tree trunks in a long, winding path. While it was a little difficult to step over the uneven soil and the long, thick roots, I couldn't help but look around in awe as the environment became more and more fascinating.

I kept glancing around the forest with wide eyes. Before, when we were still in the outer sections of the forest, the trees grew up tall and straight like gigantic towers. But now that we've entered a deeper, more ancient area, I've noticed that many trees began to grow in strange, odd ways. Many grew diagonally off the ground, criss – crossing with each other and forming large, angular arches overhead. Some of them had oddly bent trunks, curling themselves over our path or even around other trees. It was so strange and mysterious to me, and yet, I couldn't help but feel amazed and impressed by it.

By this point, we had entered an area so deep within the forest, there was no more sunlight coming down through the canopy. In fact, as I looked upward, I couldn't even see the canopy. Wooden tree trunks, coupled with a tangled web of spindly branches made up our ceiling. It blocked any light from reaching us down here within the belly of the wood.

However, despite being mired in the dark, we still had a source of light around us. Brin had somehow conjured up a small flame on the tip of a long twig, and we were using it as a torch to lead us through the darkness. Coupled with her flame, our path was also littered with the glowing mushrooms Blue and I found before. Another source of light was also available to us in the form of the dull, green moss that covered the tree trunks.

Brin showed us a neat little trick involving the moss. She raised up her hand to the moss and pressed against it. Within seconds, the moss expanded in size and began to radiate with a vibrant emerald light. Orange, blue and green lights danced around the three of us, illuminating the trees and our faces with a multitude of colors as we wandered deeper and deeper into the wood.

"This is so beautiful...!" I whispered as I watched Brin tap another patch of glowing moss. I was holding onto Blue's arm once again, helping him through the rough terrain as his crutch. I looked up at his face, and I saw his mouth hanging open at the wondrous sight around us.

"I've never seen anything like this before," I said as I tugged at Blue's arm, "this is... this is just so amazing!"

"Aren't you glad you became an explorer?" Blue remarked as he tweaked one of my ears, "I bet you'd never get to see anything like this back in town."

I giggled as I nodded in agreement with him. He was right. While I had spent years and years of my life living vicariously through the adventures of other explorers through the means of books and stories, there simply isn't a replacement for seeing something with your own eyes.

Feeling a little mischievous, I let go of Blue's arm for a moment and bounded up beside Brin, right before she was about to activate another patch of moss. I gave her a quick smile and held up my own paw in front of it. She caught the gist of what I meant and smile back at me as she put her hand down.

"Thanks!" I turned around and smiled at Blue, who had seated himself on a large tree root. Then, I turned around and gave the moss a hardy slap.

The green glow spread outward from my paw in a wave of green, bathing my fur in a beautiful emerald sheen. I laughed as I took a step back, watching the light travel up and spread its way across the entire tree trunk. It moved through the body of the tree and onto the branches above, casting its glow down at us from up above.

Then, it continued to spiral through the twisted branches overhead like a Spinarak moving across its web. Every patch of moss that the light touched began to glow as well, sending the light even further down the path. The three of us watched in awe as, within seconds, the entire forest around us began to shine like a radiant jewel.

"Hey, take a look at that!" I said, pointing my paw forward. At the end of our path, there was a bright orange – and – yellow glow in the distance. Brin made a happy noise as she clapped her hands together. She pointed ahead with her glowing twig, gesturing for us to head there.

"Looks like that's our destination," Blue said as I helped him back onto his feet, "it looks like a house of some kind, doesn't it?"

"Huh, now that you mention it..." I squinted my eyes and tried to get a better look at it. I could just barely make out the faint outline of something circular far away. Feeling a strain in my face, I shook my head and rubbed my eyes.

"Heh, you don't need to strain your eyes like that," Blue said as he poked me in the cheek, "we'll just get closer and get a better look that way."

I felt the temperature in my face rise from where he poked me. I looked up at Blue and nodded with a smile.

"Brin, can you take us there?" I asked our new friend. She nodded and gave an energetic wave with her twig before resuming our trek. Blue and I followed after her after a moment of getting used to walking with six legs again.

After a few minutes of travel, our destination came into sight. I let out a sharp gasp as it loomed out in front of us. We stood at the edge of a short cliff while a river filled with clear, sparkling water flowed on beneath us. A wide bridge made out of what appeared to be thick vines and roots stretched across the river. At the other side of the river was another cliff, a much taller one this time. But what made that cliff so breathtaking, was the gigantic log embedded inside of it.

It probably came from one of the monstrous trees that made up the forest. Something must've caused it to topple over, and slam straight into the cliff wall. As time passed, soil, rocks and other trees began to grow over the fallen log, reforming the part of the cliff that it destroyed. But, a section of the tree's trunk was still visible, it was the part that jutted out of the rock, after all. Huge, serpentine roots extended out of the circumference of what was originally the tree's stump.

What really made it amazing though, was that the huge tree was hollowed out from the center. A typical tree grows a large amount of rings within its body, which determines it age if it ever gets cut down. However, someone had taken those rings from this tree's trunk and fashioned them into a large cavern of some kind. The same orange and yellow lights we saw earlier illuminated the interior, revealing to us something strange inside.

Brin made a happy noise as she ran across the vine – like bridge. She held up her glowing twig into the air, waving it left and right as she sprinted toward the tree trunk cavern.

"Hey, hold on!" Blue shouted after her retreating back, but she didn't seem like she heard him. A few seconds later, she vanished into the tree trunk. Blue sighed and shrugged before turning to me, "Well, she's gone now. Shall we follow her?"

"I don't see why not!" I said with a giggle. Excitement was building up inside of me as I stared at the cave. Even though it looked a little frightening, I had to admit that I was more curious and interested in what was inside rather than scared. I gave Blue an enthusiastic nod before pulling him toward the vine bridge.

Tall lamps were set up on either side of the bridge, casting an orange glow over us as we walked across it. I took a look up into the air and – to my surprise – saw a thin sliver of light shining down from the sky. The cliff had separated the forest just enough so that a gap existed in between the leafy canopy above, allowing the sunlight to shine through.

Once we reached the other side of the river, we walked up to the mouth of the cave. Bright lamps were set up inside of the tree trunk, illuminating the walls with yellow – and – orange light. As we peered deeper inside, I saw something large and squarish just barely visible inside. I could hardly contain my curiosity as I tugged at Blue's arm.

"What do you think that could be?" I asked in a hushed voice, "It looks kinda like a wall to me."

"A wall?" Blue replied, "I guess we're of two minds. I thought the same thing."

"If it's a wall... then it could be a building inside!"

"Mismagius did say something about their 'abode' earlier. Do you think that could be their house?"

"Maybe!" I said as I held onto Blue's paw, trembling with excitement, "A house inside of a massive tree... that's incredible!"

"Hm, hm, hm... would you like to see it for yourselves?"

All of a sudden, an amused voice floated in between Blue and I, making the both of us jump up and turn around. There, floating in the center of the bridge was that cloaked Pokémon from before, Mismagius. She held her cloak over her face as she watched our surprised expressions.

"What's the use of standing outside in the cold?" She said as she floated past us, "Here children, follow me."

She conjured up a small, blue – colored flame in the air and used it to banish the remaining darkness inside of the tree trunk before hovering inside. Mismagius turned around and beckoned the two of us to enter as well with her cloak. Seeing no reason to refuse, Blue and I quickly trailed after Mismagius and her hovering ball of light.

Once we were inside, the identity of the strange thing we both saw became apparent. It looked like a house made out of wood, complete with a wooden door and even circular windows on the walls. Mismagius chuckled as she dismissed her blue flame and phased right through the wall, disregarding the door or the windows.

Blue and I, on the other hand, stood in front of the entrance. I held up my paw and knocked twice on the wooden door, even though I was pretty sure we were allowed to just go inside. It just felt right to knock on a door before entering. To my delight, the door opened up with a creaky noise. Brin stood on the other side, doorknob in her hand. She was staring at me with a confused expression on her face.

"Can we come inside?" I asked with a silly smile on my face. Brin looked at me, then looked up at Blue before giving us a slow nod. She moved away from the doorway, allowing us to enter.

Compared to the cool forest, this house was a wonderful and warm respite. Despite looking rather large from the outside, it felt very cozy now that I was inside. Pretty much every inch inside of the house was taken up with a piece or furniture or an object of some kind. Books, tables, chairs, and so on and so forth. There was even a large, black stove off the side of the room, resembling the same one that was inside of the Phantom Patisserie.

A crackling fire was burning inside of a pretty big fireplace at the far end of the house, basking the entire room in a warm, orange glow. I spotted a large, black pot bubbling away in the fire. The lid of the pot was clattering as the liquid inside was boiling, or so I assumed. Surrounding the fireplace were several large and fluffy – looking poufs, while a rickety rocking chair sat beside them.

Brin picked up one of the many books scattered on the floor and wandered over beside the fireplace. She plopped herself down on one of the large poufs and began to read. It piqued my interest. I wonder what kind of book she reads? I trotted over to the fireplace, making sure not to accidentally step on anything on the floor as I did so, and looked at the cover of her book.

"Aah!" I shouted out loud as I recognized the book. Brin's eyes opened wide as she jumped off the pouf with a start, the book flying out of her hands and into the air.

"Whoa!" Blue leaned over and caught the book before it landed inside of the fireplace. He sighed in relief as he held the black – covered book in his paw before handing it back to Brin. Blushing, I quickly mouthed an apology to Brin before pointing at the book.

"That's 'Dusknoir's Travels,' isn't it?" I said as I walked over to Brin's side. I peered at the page she was on and smiled, "It is! I recognize that chapter! It's the one where he defeats an entire horde of Sableye, all on his own!"

Brin gave me an enthusiastic nod as she pointed at the pages, then back at herself.

"You like his books too?" I said, understanding what her motion meant. "Same here! I love all of Dusknoir's books!" I pointed at the pages and said, "You know, back in Treasure Town – thats where I live, by the way – there's a library filled with all kinds of books. Including every single book that Dusknoir wrote!"

Her eyes widened as she clapped her hands together. Her eyes were sparkling with excitement as she pointed at the Explorer's Pack around my neck. A little confused, I sat down and took my bag off and opened it. As she peered inside, I saw her excitement fade as all she saw were the exploration tools I had inside. She picked up my length of rope and sighed.

"Oh... did you think I brought one of the books along?" I asked her, taking a wild guess. With a disappointed on her face, she handed me my rope back and I put it back inside my bag. I gave her a little lopsided grin as I shook my head, "Sorry, I don't think I'm allowed to bring library books outside of the town. Well, I wouldn't bring a book out with me on an expedition in the first place, but..."

Brin sighed again as she picked up her copy of 'Dusknoir's Travels.' I pulled up a pouf and sat beside her as she cracked the book open again. We began to read through the chapter about Sableye together.

"My, you two are getting along quite well."

Our heads turned away from the book as Mismagius appeared in front of the fireplace. The cloaked Pokémon let out a content sigh as she draped herself on top of the rocking chair. She smiled at the three of us as she rocked the chair back and forth, filling the building with the sound of dull creaking.

With a cheerful cry, Brin sat up from her pouf and walked toward Mismagius. She held her book in front of her chest as she stood in front of the rocking chair. I saw her mouth open and close in a silent conversation with Mismagius. She pointed a finger at me halfway through, making my ears pop up from curiosity. I wonder what they were talking about?

"Ho ho... I see... So that's why you're so excited all of a sudden, my dear." Mismagius held Brin's hand with her cloak and smiled at her, "Does that mean you wish to see it? There is no shame in asking her, you know."

I tilted my head to the side in confusion. It seemed like they were talking about me, but only hearing one half of the conversation made it a little difficult for me to understand what it was about. Brin shook her head and showed Mismagius the book in her other hand.

"My, that's a little selfish, wouldn't you say?" Mismagius tapped Brin on the nose with her cloak and chuckled, "But if you wish, then I shall ask her for you."

Mismagius levitated herself off the rocking chair and floated toward Blue and I. Brin followed after her, peeking out at us from behind Mismagius' cloak.

"Eevee," Mismagius said as she held out her cloak toward me, "my daughter has a little favor she would like to ask of you."

"Oh, you can call me Fée," I said, giving her a quick bow of my head. I gestured toward my partner and added, "and his name is Blue."

"Fée... Blue..." Mismagius covered her mouth with her cloak as she mulled over our names, "Quite unique names. I rather like them, don't you worry."

"So... what is this favor she wants?" I glanced over at Brin, who was eying me shyly.

Mismagius shook her head and let out a laugh. "You've quite impressed her with your description of that library at... what was it again...? Treasure Town?"

"Yes it is," I said with a quick nod, "does she want to visit it or something?"

Brin's eyes widened and she shook her head before ducking behind Mismagius' cloak. Mismagius sighed and frowned.

"No, sadly, that isn't what she wants," she said with disappointment in her voice, "rather, my daughter would like it if you could possibly bring her a book or two from that library." Mismagius spread out her cloak, directing my attention toward the mess that permeated the house.

"As you can see, I have no shortage of books around here in this house. However, most of these books aren't to my daughter's liking, as they're all recipe books and old this – or – thats that only an old Pokémon like me would enjoy."

"Hm?" I raised up my head as a thought flew through my mind. I pointed at the copy of 'Dusknoir's Travels' in Brin's hand and asked, "Then, how did you get a copy of that book? I remember it's pretty expensive back at Treasure Town."

"It was a gift," Mismagius answered, taking the book from Brin's hands, "a certain explorer pair that visited this forest before you two had this book in their packs. They saw how interested Brin was with it, and gave it to her."

"An explorer pair...?"

"Never you mind about them," Mismagius said, waving away my question with a sweep of her cloak, "back to her request... can you fulfill it?"

"Um..." With an apologetic look, I shook my head and said, "I'm sorry, but I can't."

A crestfallen look appeared on Brin's face as she heard me say that.

"Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't want to," I quickly added, "but rather, I can't. I've already told Brin that Mr. Mime wont allow anyone to bring his books outside of the town. And copies of Dusknoir's books are incredibly expensive back home. If I could buy a copy for you, Brin, I really would! I'm sorry..."

"I see, well..." She turned toward Brin, who looked despondent at the news. Mismagius wrapped her cloak around Brin and said, "Don't be sad, my dear. You know, there's always another way for you to read those books you love so much."

Brin looked up at Mismagius with wide eyes. She shook her head and threw her arms around the cloaked Pokémon. Mismagius sighed and patted Brin's back as she turned her head toward Blue and I.

"I suppose it was worth asking," she said with a small smile, "don't worry too much about it, Fée. I should thank you for indulging her selfish desires."

Mismagius gave Brin a little pat on the head before pulling away from her. Brin sighed as she sat down on a pouf, hugging that single book in her arms. I felt a little bad for refusing her request, but as of now, it simply wasn't possible for me.

"Say, Fée," Blue mumbled into my ear, "how much do those books cost?"

I looked at him with a questioning eye, "Why do you want to know?"

"Just curious, that's all."

"Um... well," I screwed up my face as I tried to remember, "the last time I checked at Kecleon's, the latest novel was going for over 6,000 Poké..."

"Is that a lot?" Blue commented, rubbing his chin.

"It's a lot more money than I've ever seen in my entire life, if that puts it into perspective for you."

"Hm..." He turned away and began to mumble something to himself. I couldn't quite hear it over the crackling of the fire, but I figured it probably wasn't important. After all, I can't really imagine Blue having a lot of money, considering his circumstances.

"Fée, Blue," all of a sudden, Mismagius called our attention toward her. She was hovering in front of the fireplace, blocking the glow of the fire with her cloak, "I believe you two have something you wish to ask of me, did you not?"

That's right. That was the entire reason we came to the forest, of course. I glanced over to Blue's leg, and nodded to myself. This was it, this was our goal.

"Mismagius," I said in a slow, steady voice, "we would like to know more about the Panacea."

A crooked smile appeared on Mismagius' face. This, coupled with the dim glow that was emanating from the fire behind her, gave her a rather spooky appearance. She began to cackle in a low pitched tone, making my fur stand up from how eerie it sounded.

"Little Fée..." She said all of a sudden, making me jump up with a start, "I have a question for you."

"Y – yes...?" I said, trembling a little from her sudden shift in demeanor.

"Hee heee..." Mismagius made another low pitched cackle as she held her cloak toward me, "this is an important question. I would like you to use your imagination to answer it for me." She covered her face with her cloak and spoke in that echoing, transparent voice she used to address us back in the clearing.

'Very well... Then answer this: What do you think the Panacea is?'


	23. There's none left for you!

**•   
Chapter 22**

**"There's none left for you!"**

* * *

Mismagius' words left me confused. What did I think the Panacea was? Wasn't it a legendary medicine that can cure any illness? My imagination had conjured up images of bright, colorful liquids housed inside of a glass bottle or a cast – iron pot. Furthermore, didn't Chimecho say that it had to be ingested? So it had to be something edible, right? So could it possibly be something like a small pill, or even a mysterious berry?

I held my paw over my mouth as I looked down at the hardwood floor. All sorts of theories and ideas were racing through my brain as I continued to guess as to what the Legendary Panacea Elixir could be.

"You have quite a vivid imagination, Fée." A quiet cackle from Mismagius snapped me out of my thoughts. She tapped my forehead with the hem of her cloak and said, "However, I am sorry to say that you are completely and utterly mistaken."

"E – eh?" I felt my eyes open wide out of shock. Did she just read my mind? I haven't even spoken a single word about my ideas yet!

The phantom – like Pokémon covered her face with her cloak and let out another echoing cackle. Then, she moved toward the fireplace, where the small pot was bubbling away in the fire. Steam billowed out of the pot as she lifted the lid. All of a sudden, a wooden ladle and bowl appeared beside Mismagius in a puff of purple smoke. Both cooking utensils hovered around her, controlled by some sort of psychic power.

"Blue," she addressed my friend as she dipped the ladle within the pot and began to stir it. I turned around and saw Blue lying down on one of the poufs, a book upside – down in his paws and a surprised expression on his face.

"Huh?"

As Mismagius took the ladle out of the pot, I saw that it was filled with some sort of silvery – white liquid. She poured the steamy, shiny soup into the bowl and replaced the lid on the pot. The ladle then disappeared in another puff of purple smoke.

I watched with great curiosity as the bowl hovered through the air, carried by a plume of purple. It stopped right in front of Blue. He put down the book he was reading and held the bowl in his paws. As he did so, a wooden spoon appeared inside of the bowl with another puff of smoke.

"What is this?" He asked, eying the broth with a suspicious look on his face. He held the bowl up to his face and gave it a tentative sniff.

"Take a sip, my dear," Mismagius said as she sat back down on her rocking chair, "I assure you, it is nothing to be cautious about."

I saw Blue glance over at Brin, who gave him a quick nod. She pointed at her mouth and smiled at him. Shrugging, Blue smiled back at her and picked up the spoon. He scooped up a bit of the silvery soup and stuck it inside of his mouth. As he swallowed the soup, his eyes flew wide open and his ears perked up. Blue pulled the spoon out of his mouth and stared at it in silence.

All of a sudden, a thought ran through my mind. That soup... could it be? Could it have been the Panacea Elixir? My head turned toward Mismagius, who was sitting in her chair and looking at Blue with an amused expression. Then, I looked at Blue's leg, fully expecting his scars to have vanished. However, my hopes were dampened as I saw that his black leg was still covered in angry red marks.

"This is great!" Blue said in a cheerful voice as my ears drooped down the sides of my face. He swallowed another spoonful of the soup and nodded at Mismagius, "It's so sweet and tasty. I love it!"

"Why, it's but a simple broth, my dear." Mismagius said in a cheerful tone. She held up her cloak and conjured up a curled up, pink – colored berry. "Boiled Mago Berry, grown right here in the forest." The berry vanished in a puff of purple smoke, and the ladle took its place. She made her way over to the pot again as two more bowls appeared behind her, "It's a bit of an old fashioned recipe, but it's one of Brin's favorites."

Brin clapped her hands together and nodded with a smile on her face. She sat down beside Blue and watched him as he proceeded to drain the soup from the bowl. Mismagius finished filling up the two other bowls with soup and brought them over to Brin and I. She placed the bowl on the floor in front of me, while Brin happily held hers with her hands.

"So... this isn't the Panacea?" I said as I leaned down to sniff the soup. It did have a very nice, sweet smell to it. I dipped my head down and took a sip. A delightful sensation of sweetness flooded my mouth, making my fur stand up and my nose twitch. I felt the tiredness inside of my body be forced out as the warm, savory broth slipped down my throat.

"Didn't I tell you that your theory was wrong?" Mismagius gave me a gentle tap on the forehead with her ladle. She smiled at me as I rubbed my head, feeling a blot of the sticky soup on my face. "The Panacea is not a broth, nor is it a salve or a pill. In fact, it is not even something you can hold in your paws, Fée."

"Huh?"

Something that I can't even hold? What does that mean? Is it some sort of gas or vapor? Or is it a song of some kind? As I licked the soup off my paw, I felt a twinge of annoyance inside my head. All this guessing was beginning to give me a bit of a headache. Why doesn't Mismagius just tell me what the Panacea is?

"There's a good reason for that, Fée." Mismagius said as she took her cloak and pressed it against my face, wiping off the soup on my forehead. "When Duskull told you about the Panacea, did he not warn you about keeping it a secret?"

"He did," I replied with a nod, "he said that there were many evil Pokémon out there that might abuse the Panacea for greedy reasons." I gestured toward my explorer's pack, "That's why, when he gave us his letter, he told us to read it when we were alone."

"Yes, that sounds like Duskull. He was always quite a cautious one." Mismagius said as she removed her cloak from my face. She let out a small chuckle and said, "But, that only makes it easier for me to trust you."

Mismagius looked over at where Blue and Brin were sitting. Blue had finished his bowl of soup and was lying on his back with a content look on his face, while Brin was giggling and poking him in the belly. Mismagius shook her head and waved her cloak at them, making Blue's empty bowl and spoon disappear. Surprised, Blue yelped and fell off his pouf. Brin and I both giggled at him as he staggered back upright with a dazed look on his face.

"Fée," I held my paw against my mouth to stifle my giggles as I turned toward Mismagius. My laughter stopped when I saw her wearing a serious expression. She bowed her head down and whispered to me in a voice so quiet, I had to strain my ears to hear it.

"Would you believe me if I said the Panacea was in this room, right now?"

"It is?" My eyes shot wide as I bgean to twist my head around, sweeping the room for any sign of a magical elixir. All I could see though, were endless piles of books and dusty furniture. There wasn't anything that I thought could be the Panacea.

When I turned my head back to Mismagius, I saw that she was looking at something else. I followed her eyes and found myself staring at Brin. I tilted my head to the side. Was Brin holding the Panacea? Or was the one who knew about its location?

"No, you're mistaken once more, Fée." Mismagius whispered to me with a shake of her head. "It's not quite as simple as that, no matter how much I wish it was."

"I... I don't understand what you mean."

Mismagius let out a deep sigh as she turned back toward me. Her expression was solemn; her mouth was twisted into a sad frown. She tipped her large hat down so that it covered her eyes and floated back to her rocking chair.

"Brin," she said in a tired – sounding voice. Brin's head turned toward Mismagius with a curious expression on her face. Mismagius pointed her cloak at the door and said, "we're running low on Mago Berries. Would you be a dear and go pick some for me?" She pointed at Blue and added, "You may bring your new friend along too. Show him your delightful little trees, I'm sure he'll appreciate that."

With a wide smile on her face, Brin sprung up from the ground and nodded her head. She clapped her hands together and looked down at Blue with an eager look.

"Blue, promise me you'll take care of my daughter while you're out there." Mismagius said as Blue pulled himself off the pouf, "I know you're injured, but –"

"It's fine, I'll keep her safe." Blue said in a loud voice, interrupting Mismagius. He thumped his chest with his fist and grinned, "You can count on me!"

"My, you're so enthusiastic..." Mismagius nodded her head and chuckled, "very well then, off you two go. Be sure to be back before nightfall, alright?"

Brin made an excited nod and hurried toward the door, with Blue following closely behind her. She picked up a small basket made out of straw and twigs that was hanging on a rack beside the door. I glanced over at them, then at Mismagius with confusion boiling in my mind.

"H – hold on... what about me?" I said, feeling a little left out. That strange emotion from earlier was bubbling up inside of my heart again as I saw Brin hold Blue by the arm. For some reason, I felt sad when I saw the bright smile on her face when she pulled my partner out the door.

"I would like you to stay here and accompany this old lady," Mismagius whispered as she waved goodbye to Brin and Blue, "there is something important I would like to share with you that I'd rather those two not overhear."

Mismagius hovered over toward the open door and closed it shut. Then, she turned to face me again. That solemn expression from before was back on her face as Mismagius floated over to my side. She let out a deep sigh as she lowered herself onto the pouf that Blue was sitting on prior.

"What is it?" That odd emotion I felt before was ebbing away when I saw Mismagius' despondent look. "Is it something really bad?"

"Bad..." She shook her head and sighed again, "I suppose you can call it that." She lifted her head and stared into my eyes. "Fée, would you mind telling this old lady what you've heard about the Legendary Panacea Elixir?"

That was a strange request, I thought. Wouldn't Mismagius know what the Panacea was already? Regardless, I nodded and began to recount everything I knew about the Panacea.

"All I know about the Legendary Panacea Elixir was that it is a sort of medicine that harbors an incredible power. A Pokémon at my guild told me a rumor that, if anyone eats the Panacea, it would fully cure any illness he or she had." I closed my eyes and thought about something else even farther back, "I also read in one of my books that the Great Dusknoir also obtained the Panacea before, and used it to save a friend of his."

"Duskull also called it the 'most powerful medicine in the world.'" I recalled the skull – faced Pokémon's words and shook my head, "He also added that that was why it is so dangerous."

"He isn't wrong," Mismagius said with a low voice, "it truly is a powerful treasure, the Panacea." Mismagius held up her cloak and picked up Brin's half – finished bowl of soup and stared at it with a pensive expression on her face.

"Danger follows with anything of value... anything of worth," she said as she tipped the bowl over, letting the silvery soup spill onto the wooden floor, "no matter what it is, or what it could be. There will always be trouble stalking alongside it like an evil shadow. It lies in wait for that one moment where it is vulnerable, to abuse, to exploit it... for nothing more than petty greed."

I watched in silence as the last drop of the soup hit the floor with a dull _plop_. Mismagius let the bowl drop from her grasp, allowing it to splash into the puddle beneath it. The bowl rolled around on its side, trailing a long line of silver behind it before it clattered against a wall.

"My dear Brin... I've always wished for her to have a happy, normal life." Mismagius stared at me with a crooked smile on her face. The light in her eyes was wavering, and she looked as though she was about to cry.

"...what do you mean?" I spoke with a little timidity in my voice. "Brin... Brin only knows where the Panacea is, right?"

"If it were only that simple." Mismagius repeated her words from before. I felt a chilly breeze blow in through the windows, even though the house was situated deep inside of a fallen log. The flame in the fireplace flickered and shrunk in the wind, dimming the light inside of the room.

"Then... what is it?"

"The truth is... my dear Brin..." Mismagius' voice was quiet and wispy. She hid her eyes beneath the brim of her hat. I could tell that she was struggling to get the words out. After a moment of silence, she shook her head and covered her mouth with her cloak. A glistening teardrop slid down the side of her face.

"The Legendary Panacea Elixir... is my daughter."

* * *

"H – hey, slow down! I can't move as fast as you can!"

Brin stopped in her tracks and turned around. Trailing behind her, stumbling across the rough terrain and nearly tripping over some roots was her new buddy. He leaned against a tree and panted, his chest was heaving in exhaustion. Brin tilted her head to the side, giving him a curious stare.

The path from her house over to the berry grove wasn't a difficult one. After crossing the vine bridge, all one had to do was head into the forest and follow the direction of the glowing mushrooms. Although the path was littered with stray roots and uneven ground, it wasn't anything too difficult for anyone to traverse.

The Braixen neared her new friend, worried about his condition. She stared up and down his body, her eyes glinting with interest. Even though he was a smaller Pokémon than she was, he looked much tougher, much stronger than her. Brin had never seen a Pokémon like him or his friend in the forest before. For all her life, the only Pokémon that were around her all the time was her mother and Oro. So seeing someone like Blue was a fascinating new experience.

As Brin prodded him with her finger, she recalled what Fée had said back at the forest clearing. Blue was badly injured, and that he needed a lot of rest. Thinking back, when she first met the pair, he looked as though he was exhausted on the grass, wasn't he? Brin bent down and looked up at his tired face. He had the same expression as back then.

"Hm?" Blue noticed Brin's curious gaze and quickly shook his head. He took a few steps away from the Braixen and smiled, "It's alright, I'm fine. I just needed a moment to catch my breath."

Brin's brow furrowed as he straightened himself out and began walking again. No matter which way she looked at him, he did not look 'fine.' In fact, it was the opposite. With every step he took, his eyes would wince and the right side of his body would twitch. Brin sidled up beside the Riolu and tilted her head sideways, staring at him with narrowed eyes.

"I'm fine, don't you worry." Blue said with a wave of his paw, "I'm just a little tired from that fight with your buddy, that's all." He held his paw up to his chin and paused. "Oh, um... I guess I should apologize for that again." Blue clapped his paws together in front of his face and bowed low, "I'm really sorry!"

He meant Oro, the guardian. Brin shook her head and waved both of her hands at him. Like he said earlier, it was all a misunderstanding. Brin was sure that even Oro would forgive him and his friend for that battle. Not to mention, Oro was super tough anyway! He was the strongest guardian of the forest. A few scrapes here and there was nothing to him.

"I should go see that tree again before I leave," Blue remarked as he raised his head, "I want to apologize to him in person for punching him like that. Even if he was a tree, I'm sure it must've hurt him quite a bit." He sighed and shrugged, "I know a lot about being hurt in the arms and legs, so I feel really bad about what I did."

Brin stared at him, a smile was on her face. Despite their first encounter with each other being a little... rough, she was now sure that he was a nice person. In many ways, he reminded her of Oro. From what she saw of their battle, she saw that Blue was almost just as strong as the Trevenant. He was protective too, brave and caring with the way he defended his partner from Oro in the end.

"Is there something on my face?"

She quickly averted her gaze. Brin covered her face with her hands, trying to mask the rising blush on her face. It was that strange and unfamiliar emotion again. Why is that whenever this Pokémon talked or even just looked at her, she would feel like this? She shook her head and tried to think about something else, like the trees, or her leaf collection.

Looking around the path, she noticed a leaf lying on a large root ahead of them. It was shaped a little bit like a star, and it looked very unique. As she picked it up, she looked up into the canopy above, wondering what kind of tree the leaf came from.

Living in a forest for all her life had made Brin very aware of the different types of plants and trees that lived alongside her. Nature was her best friend as well as her home, which is why she enjoyed collecting the leaves of the many different trees that grew in the forest. All of them had different shapes, sizes and patterns on them.

For example, this star – shaped leaf had a pretty, multicolored swirl in the center. Five colors extended out from the center and spread to each point of the leaf, giving it a rainbow – like look to it. It was a leaf from a Starf Berry tree, a rare sight even for Brin. She held the leaf close to her chest, feeling the faint warmth emanating from it. Maybe she'll find its parents, and bring back some of its berries for her mother later.

"Hm? What's that you got there?"

Brin gave Blue a shy smile as she revealed to him the starry leaf in her hands. He let out a low whistle as he examined the impressive little thing.

"Hey, that's really pretty!" he said, smiling at Brin, "I'm sure Fée would be excited to see a leaf like that. I wonder if there's any more of them around here?"

The Riolu made a big show about looking around them with his paw hovering above his eyes. Brin let out a quiet giggle at his antics before shaking her head. No matter how hard he tried to look, it would be difficult for something unfamiliar with the forest to find such a rare tree. She pulled on his arm, trying to convince him to follow her with her eyes.

"Is it that way?" Blue asked, an eager gleam was shining in his red eyes, "Well, you know the forest better than I do. Lead the way!"

Brin giggled again. She felt a little bad that she was about to disappoint him. An idea popped inside of her head though. With a grin, she held up her starry leaf and presented it to her new friend.

"Hm?" Blue looked a little surprised at the sudden gift. He looked up at Brin's beaming face and shook his head, "No, I can't just take that from you." He pushed it back to her and grinned, "It's yours, Brin. You don't have to give it to me."

She scowled and insisted, pressing the leaf harder against his chest. She wanted him to have it, it was a gift from her to him, and she didn't want him to refuse. Brin stared at him, her eyes imploring.

"Really? Well, if you insist..." Blue took a hold of the leaf and held it up into the air. The faint sunlight shining down through the forest treetops made the little star glow with all five colors. Blue gave Brin a multicolored grin as the sunlight shined against his face, "Thanks, Brin. I'll take care of it."

Brin felt her face turn hot again. That warm emotion was filling her up again, and it was making it hard for her to continue looking at the grinning Riolu. She held her cheeks and looked away, aware that her heart was beating very hard for some reason she could not comprehend.

"Hm, I don't want to just stuff this in my pack..." Blue mumbled as he fiddled around with the clasp of his Explorer's Pack. He glanced at the leaf and then at the bulging bag around his side. Shaking his head, he closed his pack and just held it in his right paw. "It'll be safer this way. I don't want it to be crushed."

Having cooled off a bit, Brin turned back around and saw Blue adjust his grasp on the leaf so he wouldn't wrinkle it. He looked back at Brin and nodded.

"Alright, let's get going then." He said, pointing at the small basket hanging off Brin's arm, "We have to pick those berries for Mismagius, remember?"

Brin glanced down at the basket and felt her ears perk up. That's right, they still had a task to complete. She could already imagine her mother making her another pot of her favorite Mago Berry soup when they returned home. Excited, Brin nodded at Blue and ran ahead of him onto the path ahead. The berry grove was but a few paces further!

"Hey, what's the rush?" She heard him shout at her, but she was already too excited to stop for him. Her heart was still pounding from happiness. Was it because he accepted her gift? Or was she just anticipating another bowl of soup? Brin couldn't quite make heads or tails of her emotions right now. But what she did know, was that she felt much happier than she had ever been in years.

* * *

It was like a Voltorb had just exploded right next to me. I gaped at Mismagius, my mind unable to comprehend what she just said. Brin was the Panacea? Just what was that supposed to mean? Does that mean she was the only one capable of making it? No... that can't be it. Mismagius already said that the Panacea wasn't something I could hold. Mismagius also said that it wasn't because Brin knew the secret location of it either. So then... maybe...

"Brin... does she have some sort of special ability?" I threw out a wild guess into the air. It was the only thing I could think of after exhausting every other possibility. I stared at Mismagius, waiting for her response.

"...yes, you've finally figured it out." Mismagius said with a small, sad smile. She held up her cloak and, within a purple puff of smoke, conjured up a small, silver locket that was shaped like a heart. She levitated the locket over and dropped it in front of me. When it hit the floor, the locket sprung open, revealing its contents.

"Is this... Brin?"

There was a small engraving on the underside of the cover. It was of a Pokémon that looked a lot like Brin, except it was standing on four legs. In a way, the Pokémon resembled me. I turned my gaze over to the other side of the locket, and noticed another engraving. This time, it was of a much taller Pokémon that stood on two legs, just like Brin. But, the Pokémon radiated a much more mature aura, and looked like it was wearing a robe.

"The engraving on the left is Brin as a child." Mismagius explained, pointing at the four legged Pokémon with her cloak. "But the one on the right... is her mother."

"What? That's you?!" I looked down at the engraving, then back up at Mismagius. "You hardly resemble it at all!"

Mismagius shook her head, her sad smile was still present on her face as she pointed at the second engraving. "Unfortunately, that engraving is of her true parent, not I."

"But... you called Brin your daughter, didn't you?" I asked, feeling confused. I pointed at the engraving of the robed Pokémon, "Where is she then?"

"She's... no longer with us anymore..."

I felt my body turn ice cold. Mismagius' voice was wavering as she tried to remain composed, but I could see her cloak shuddering as she tried to hold back her tears. Marill and Azurill's faces appeared in my mind as I held my paws up to my mouth. My eyes drifted down to the engraving again. Her mother didn't look very old, in fact, she looked as though she was rather young when the picture was made.

"W – what happened to her?" I asked.

Mismagius closed her eyes and wiped the tears off her face with her cloak. Once she had taken a deep breath, Mismagius spoke.

"Delphox was her name," Mismagius' voice was still trembling, "long ago, I lived in a large city alongside Delphox and Duskull." She raised the locket off the ground and held it in front of her, "For Duskull and I, it was a simple affair to make it from one day to the next. However, Delphox was different. She had a child."

The locket glinted in the dim light cast by the fireplace. It illuminated the engraving of a young Brin.

"Brin was her name... and she was a bundle of joy for the three of us. It made living in the dreary city much more happy and colorful." Mismagius closed her eyes and smiled. She pointed her claok at me and said, "It was because of Brin that Duskull spent so much time struggling to learn how to bake."

But her smile only lasted for a few seconds before it melted back into a frown. "But... those happy days ended once Brin grew older. Once she reached a certain age, it became evident to us that there was something special about her."

"The Panacea?" I guessed, "Was that it?"

"It wasn't called the Panacea then," Mismagius stated with a shake of her head, "but it eventually became known as such once more and more Pokémon became aware of her abilities." The locket glimmered again as Mismagius closed it, "You see... one day, when Duskull was still getting the hang of baking pastries, he accidentally burned himself severely on the stove in front of his customers."

"When that happened, Brin became concerned over his pain. She walked up to Duskull right in front of all the customers and touched him with her paw. In a flash of light, Duskull's injury had vanished."

"That's incredible!" I said, my eyes wide, "So she cured him just like that?"

Mismagius shook her head, "No, it wasn't that simple." She pointed at the bowl on the floor, which was now lying face – down in a small puddle of soup. "When excitement over Duskull's miraculous recovery faded, we found Brin lying on the floor, unconscious and exhausted."

"We had picked her up and tried to rouse her, but she was sleeping so soundly that not even the voice of her mother could wake her up. By the time she awoke, the damage had already been done."

"The damage?"

A deep sigh came from Mismagius. "Yes. It was obvious to the customers as to what happened. A miraculous healing had just occurred right in front of them, and the one who made it possible..." Mismagius swept her cloak over her face as she shook her head.

"...rumors spread, and over the course of several days, it became common knowledge that the young Fennekin that lived with her mother and two ghosts possessed a power known as the 'Panacea.'" Mismagius let out a dry chuckle, "Day after day, we would get visitors rushing into our abode, demanding and begging for us to have Brin use her powers on them."

"But it made Brin faint, didn't it?" I replied, "If she became that exhausted just by healing Duskull, how could she handle that many visitors?"

"That's the thing," Mismagius said in a dark voice, "we couldn't let our dear Brin use her powers. After all, she was only a few years old. Who knows if overusing this strange ability could permanently damage her?"

"But even when we told the visitors and beggars of her condition, they did not listen. All they could see in their eyes was the Legendary Panacea, and not a young, fragile child."

"That's awful..." I said, shaking my head out of disgust, "how could they do such a thing?"

"It became worse as time went by," Mismagius continued, "the visitors and beggars never stopped demanding that we hold back such a miraculous cure, and accused us of hoarding the power for ourselves. They demanded that we hand the Panacea over to the public. We couldn't even allow Brin to go outside and play in fear that she would be kidnapped by these cretins."

Mismagius covered up her face with her cloak and sobbed, "Can you imagine keeping such a young child locked away in a lonely room for weeks and months, with only two ghosts and her mother for company?"

"Mismagius..."

"Brin... oh Brin..." Mismagius choked, "her mother was so distraught when she realized that her daughter had to live in such a squalid way for the rest of her life. She wanted to leave the city, but what could they do? Delphox and Brin were celebrities now, there was no way for them to leave the house without being recognized."

"That was when Duskull and I decided to find a way to smuggle them out of the city. We plotted for months, trying to figure out the safest way to escape, and where to head toward." Mismagius pointed her cloak toward the ceiling, "We decided that the best place to head to was a place far, far away from civilization. A place where Brin could walk around outside, under the sun without fear of being recognized."

"You headed to the frontier?"

She nodded and dropped her cloak, "That's right. In the city, there weren't many Pokémon interested in exploration teams or expeditions, so the frontier wasn't a very popular subject amongst the populace. It was the perfect place to escape to. We left the city the night after we decided on it."

"But..." I glanced at the locket. A lump formed in my throat as I realized that something was wrong with her story. "Delphox... what happened to Delphox?"

"Delphox... she couldn't make it," Mismagius covered up her teary face with her cloak and inhaled sharply before continuing. "That night... we ran into a group of Pokémon in our escape route. It was a gang of Scrafty and Bisharp. I don't know how they knew about our plans, but they were lying there in ambush for us."

"It was obvious as to what their goal was." Mismagius spoke with a disgusted tone, "They wanted the Legendary Panacea Elixir. They wanted _Brin_."

"That's horrible!" I recoiled in horror, "They were waiting there to attack you?!"

"Duskull and I... we couldn't stop them," Mismagius wrapped her trembling form with her cloak, her tears were flowing freely down her face now. "Brin was fast asleep then, Delphox was desperately trying to protect her daughter from the ambushers' onslaught."

Mismagius shuddered as she continued to reminisce about the horrifying event. I felt my own eyes tearing up as I pictured the terror that must've happened that night. Shaking my head, I walked up to the crying Mismagius' side and threw my paws around her. I hugged her tight, trying to console her as well as I could.

"Thank you Fée..." Mismagius spoke in a quiet voice as she hugged me back, "It's... it's hard to think about it... even now..."

"I'm so sorry..." That was all I could say. I didn't know what else I could do other than hold Mismagius tighter.

"Everything was a blur that night..." Mismagius' voice was lower than a whisper now, "...all I could remember was Delphox screaming at Duskull and I to take Brin as far away as we could. She stayed behind, firing off flame after flame in a desperate attempt to stave off our attackers."

"No!" I looked up at Mismagius, my eyes wide with horror, "She sacrificed herself... for Brin...?"

"Brin... Brin woke up at the sound of her mother's voice... at the sound of her mother's scream as those wretched beasts struck her down..." Mismagius let out a rattling gasp as she sobbed into my fur, "D – Delphox... I'm so sorry... please... if only I was a little stronger... I could've saved your life...!"

"Mismagius...!" I held onto her as she wailed loudly.

"E – ever since that night... I h – have never heard Brin s – speak a single word again..." She shook her head, "Not to me... not to Duskull... not to anyone..."

The silver locket that she was holding fell out of the air and clattered onto the wooden floor. The impact made it spring open, revealing the engravings of Brin and her mother. As I held the crying Mismagius, I felt tears of my own flow down my face. Through my teary gaze, I could see engravings inside of the locket flicker with the flames in the fireplace...

* * *

After a few minutes of joyous skipping, Brin entered a wide clearing within the forest. The soil beneath her feet was soft and loamy, the perfect kind for planting berries in. She knelt and patted the ground, feeling the springy texture of the dirt. A small twinge of warmth entered her fingers, making Brin smile and stand back up.

Four small trees were arranged in a row ahead of her. They weren't very tall, but they made up for their lack of height in volume. Many thick leaves expanded from the tree's branches, making the four of them look more like bushes.

Happy that she made it to her destination, Brin ran toward her beloved Mago trees. She planted them herself a few years back. Ever since then, she had lovingly cultivated and raised them every day. Watering them, trimming them, and harvesting their delicious berries. To the young Braixen, these four trees were like her own children.

But, something was wrong. As she neared the first tree, she noticed that there were hardly any berries hanging from the branches. Normally when she visited her grove, her trees would be covered from top to bottom with plump, juicy Mago Berries. And yet, as she circled around it, she could not find a single berry for her to pick.

Confusion was building up inside of her heart as she traveled over to the next tree. To her dismay, even this tree was devoid of any ripe berries. She clutched her chest tight with her hand as her confusion turned into worry. Oro and mother wouldn't take her berries, they knew how much she loved her daily chore. So why weren't there any left for her to pick?

As Brin reached the third tree, she became more and more concerned. Her basket clattered onto the ground as she rushed forward and buried her face within the leaves. She held up one of the branches of the tree and examined it with a close eye. Did her trees become sick? Did she forget to water them yesterday? No, that was impossible. She always made sure each and every one of her beloved trees had enough water. So then... why?

She sniffed the air around her grove, trying to catch a hint of any Mago Berries around. All of a sudden, she coughed and felt a nauseating sensation overwhelm her. Brin dropped onto her knees, making pitiful coughing noises as she clutched the dirt. Her white hands were becoming stained with brown as she continued to retch from the strange stench.

"Whoa, ho, ho... what have we here?"

Brin froze. Her insides became stone cold as she turned her head toward the voice. There, hovering just above her fourth tree, was a purple, ball – shaped Pokémon. A terrifying skull – like sigil was painted on his belly, and brown gas was wisping out the holes that covered his body. The gaseous Pokémon lowered himself onto the ground, where it stared into Brin's eyes.

As the ball – like Pokémon made a disgusting smile at her, Brin could see the pink remains of her berries staining the insides of his mouth. A horrifying odor emanated from the Pokémon's gut, making Brin want to throw up. What made it even worse, was that the stench carried the faint hint of Mago Berries with it.

"Were these your berries?" The Pokémon spoke, filling the air with even more rancid gas, "I didn't know that. Whoa, ho, ho!"

Brin sat up and tried to cover her nose, but the stench was so overwhelming that it didn't have any effect. Even through her hands, she could still smell the disgusting odor. Tears began to well up in her eyes as another painful coughing fit forced her back onto the ground.

"If it's any consolation," he said in a jovial voice, evidently unaware or uncaring about the pain he was causing her, "we found them to be absolutely delicious! Right, Zubat? Whoa, ho, ho!"

"That's right Koffing! Keh, heh, heh! They were great!"

Another wave of chills washed over the Braixen's body, making her quiver in fear. She found herself turning her gaze over to the source of the second voice against her will. There, flapping in the air on the side opposite the gas ball was a purple, bat – like Pokémon. Its mouth was open wide, displaying four, gleaming teeth inside.

"Keh, heh! You're quite a pretty one, aren't ya?" Zubat screeched, "It's a welcome sight after seeing nothing but stupid trees all day!"

"Whoa, ho! That's your fault for losing track of them, Zubat!" Koffing chortled, spewing a plume of brown gas out of his mouth, "If you hadn't decided to hide after hearing that spooky voice earlier, then we would've been able to stick close to the brats!"

"Shut it, Koffing!" Zubat spat, "Admit it, you were scared too when you saw that tree come to life!"

"At least the brats took care of it for us! We didn't even need to sneak past it, it was sleeping like a log! Whoa, ho, ho!"

The two purple Pokémon cackled and chortled as Brin shivered in the dirt. Were they talking about Oro? What did they do to her friend? Who were these two?!

"Hey girly, why aren't you saying anything?"

Brin flinched as Zubat landed beside her. His two pairs of fangs were right beside her face, Mago Berry juice was glistening off their shiny surfaces. With a squeak of fear, Brin looked away from Zubat and tried to get away by scrambling under her Mago trees.

"Oh no you don't!" Zubat cackled as he swung his wing at her, sending a razor sharp gale of wind zooming through the air. It sliced through the tree, making the leafy branches fall and block her way. Brin's face collided with a particularly jagged branch, making her recoil in pain.

"We've been scouring this forest for hours, and hours, and _hours._" Zubat sneered as he flew on top of the fallen branch, "And we're sick of seeing nothing but trees and leaves." He pointed his wing at her, "I saw you hiding behind that tree beast earlier. You live here, don't you?"

Brin felt like crying. Her face was throbbing out of pain from being scratched by the branch earlier. She could feel something warm trickling down her face, making her freeze out of terror.

"I'll take that silence as a yes," Zubat said, "so that means you know where that blasted Panacea thing is, don't you?"

It felt like an arrow of ice had pierced Brin's heart. Terror overcame her as she heard Zubat speak that horrible word. Her mouth opened and closed as she screamed in silence. She reached out in front of her and tried to crawl away. She wanted to run away, away from these two terrifying strangers...!

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?"

All of a sudden, a deep gash appeared in the soil in front of Brin, forcing her to withdraw her grasping hand. Zubat flapped above the Braixen, his wings pointed at the dirt in front of her.

"Look girly, we don't want any trouble." Zubat sneered, "Just give us the location of that Panacea, and we'll leave you alone."

Brin looked up at Zubat. She shook her head and waved her hands in desperation, trying to tell her assailant that she knew nothing.

"What the heck are you doing?" Zubat screeched, making Brin flinch and cower in fear. "Are you even saying words? Are you making fun of me?!"

"Whoa, ho, ho... looks like she is, Zubat." Koffing hovered over to Zubat's side, a grin plastered over his face, "Maybe she's taunting you, since you don't have any eyes. Whoa, ho, ho!"

"Is that so?" Zubat's voice became icy cold. Horrified, Brin shook her head and tried to make a sound, any sound, come out of her mouth in an attempt to pacify the angry Zubat. But, to her dismay, her voice stubbornly refused to come out.

"How would you like it if you were blind, and mute?" Zubat pointed the tip of his wing at Koffing as his mouth curled into a nasty smirk, "Hey Koffing, how about we gunk up her eyes a bit, give her a taste of how it feels to live by hearing alone!"

As Zubat and Koffing laughed at the cowering Braixen, a sudden blue blur rushed into the grove. Then, Zubat's cackling laughter was cut short as he was sent soaring through the air. A loud cracking noise exploded in the grove as Zubat found himself spiraling toward the trunk of one of the Mago Trees. With a nasty splat, Zubat's body was splayed out on the tree. He made a groaning noise as he slid down with a long squeaking noise.

"Whoa, ho?!" Koffing's eyes opened wide as he turned his gaze from his splatted friend to his attacker. He barely managed to turn an inch before a black leg planted itself into his face. Koffing let out a pained cry as he was kicked away like a ball.

"You two again..."

Blue lowered his smarting leg and spun around, facing Zubat and Koffing. He took a step forward and extended a paw to Brin, but kept his gaze trained on the two groaning bullies.

"You alright?"

Relief flooded Brin's heart as she saw the Riolu stand in front of her. With a grateful cry, she took his paw and let him pull her off the ground. When she was back on her feet, she rushed forward and pulled him into a grateful hug.

"H – hey, now isn't the best time, Brin!" Blue shouted, his mouth muffled by the fur on her belly. Brin, realizing what he meant, blushed and quickly let him go. Blue gasped for breath for a second before shaking his head and smiling at her.

"I'm glad you're okay," he said in a gentle voice. He placed his paw on her face and wiped off the red that had stained her pretty fur. Once he was sure that Brin was fine, he steeled his gaze and gestured for her to get behind him. Nodding, Brin obeyed and rushed behind the Riolu.

"K – keeeeeh...!" Zubat spat out several wood chippings out of his mouth as he staggered back into the air. He spun around, furious. "Y – you! I recognize that voice anywhere...!"

"I'm not glad to see you again," Blue spat at him, "what are you doing here?"

"Keh, heh, heh..." Zubat cackled, pointing a wing at him, "The same reason you are, brat. We're here to find and steal that so – called Legendary Panacea!"

"Oh?" Blue raised an eyebrow at Zubat, "I'm assuming you're not planning on using it to heal some ill Pokémon, are you?"

"Keeh! Who cares about the ill? Such a legendary treasure must be worth thousands and thousands of Poké! Our boss will be so glad if we bring him back something so great after that humiliating defeat you handed us a few days ago!"

Blue chuckled and held up his fists, "Well too bad, Zubat." He jerked one of his paws toward himself and said, "I've already eaten the last Panacea. There's none left for you!"

Brin's eyes opened wide as she gaped at the Riolu. What was he talking about? He didn't eat her!

"W – what?!" Zubat spluttered, "Y – you ate it?! You ate the legendary treasure?!"

"Heh... you know what the Panacea _is,_ right?" Blue smirked, "It's a medicine! You're supposed to eat it to get better! Are you _stupid?_"

"K - keeeeeh! You're lying! You have to be!" Zubat screeched in fury at Blue, "There's no way someone would be stupid enough to eat such a valuable treasure! Koffing, get up!"

Zubat swooped over to his companion and slapped him in the face with his wing, rousing him from his sleep. With a groan, Koffing rose back up into the air. He stared at Zubat with a blank look on his face before receiving another slap by the furious bat.

"Whoa! That hurt, Zubat!" Koffing belched, releasing a cloud of gas, "I'm still smarting from that kick... give me a break!"

"Shut it, gas – for – brains!" Zubat screeched, "We have to beat down that brat and force him to cough up that treasure!"

"Whoa, ho, ho!" Koffing chortled as he spun around to look at Blue, "Leave it to me! Making others hurl is my specialty!"

Blue grimaced as he prepared himself to fight. His right leg was still smarting from that running and kicking he did earlier. He didn't know how much longer it'll last, even with all the willpower he was pumping into it. If only Mismagius had given him the Panacea for real...! Then he could've fought at full strength.

The Riolu shook his head. No, this was no time to be blaming others. Brin was standing behind him, relying on him to protect her. That was all the convincing he needed to fight with whatever strength he had left. He can't fail. No, he won't fail.

"Alright then... let's play." Blue threw on a confident smirk as he pulled a Pecha Berry out of his pack. He opened wide and bit down on the juicy berry. As the juice traveled down his throat, he could feel the pain in his leg vanishing. It wont last forever, but it was enough time for him to send these two packing!

"Keeeeh!" Zubat flew toward Blue with a loud screech. He opened his mouth wide, showing off all four of his sharp fangs as he endeavored to bite the Riolu.

Blue quickly held up his right fist, and stood his ground. "Brin, don't move!" He shouted to the Braixen behind him as he stuck his paw forward, unclenched, and right in the direction of the Zubat's fangs.

"What are you doing, you idiot?!" Zubat could hardly hold back his glee as he noticed his target standing still. His fangs ached to bite something, and that stupid Riolu's paw was a prime choice!

"Gotcha!" In the split second before the fangs pierced his paw, Blue leaned back and raised up his right knee. His attack struck Zubat from below, stunning him and sending him up into the air with a pained screech flowing out of his mouth. Taking aim, Blue waited for Zubat to recover and right himself before throwing his – now a fist – right paw forward.

_Bam!_

Once more, Zubat was sent spiraling over to the Mago trees by Blue's rock hard punch. This time though, he stopped himself in midair before hitting the trunk. With an angered screech, Zubat held out his wings and swiped them at Blue. From his wings, he sent blades of air hurtling toward Blue and Brin. A high pitched whistling noise rent the air as they zipped across the grove.

"Looks like you've learned some new tricks!" Blue remarked in a carefree voice. He jumped back and grabbed Brin by the waist. Right before the blades struck him, he leapt to the side and avoided it. He watched as the blades traveled further until they embedded themselves into the large trees surrounding them, leaving deep gashes in the trunks.

"Keeeh! Stop jumping around!" Zubat seethed as he flung more blades of air toward the pesky Riolu.

Blue snickered as he effortlessly dodged the next salvo. Now that his leg wasn't hurting quite as bad, he could pull off all sorts of maneuvers. He made a mental note to thank Chimecho the next time he saw her back at the guild. Those Pecha Berries were a lifesaver!

With a smirk on his face, he avoided another set of blades. He put Brin down and gestured for her to hide behind one of the trees. After confirming that she was out of danger, Blue turned around and charged toward the Zubat with his fists drawn back. Zubat hurriedly turned around and fired more air blades at him. But before they struck the rushing Riolu, he leapt into the air.

"Haaah!" Blue bellowed a loud cry as he stuck his fist out, ready to dive bomb the flapping Zubat.

"Whoa, ho!" All of a sudden, Koffing's shout reached Blue's ears. He let out a startled growl as the gas bag appeared from out of nowhere, shoving Zubat out of the way of Blue's fist.

"Fuoooh!" Koffing opened his mouth and sucked in a large amount of air, inflating himself like a disgusting balloon. As Blue's fist struck Koffing's inflated gut, a large amount of brown gas began to billow out of Koffing's many openings. In an instant, the grove became filled with a rancid stench, making the leaves on the Mago trees wither and fall off upon contact.

"Guh!" Blue ricocheted off the springy balloon, bouncing into the air. He clutched his nose and held his breath, trying not to breathe in the disgusting gas. He had experienced firsthand just how potent Koffing's poison was. The last thing he needed was more toxin in his system.

As Blue landed back on the ground, he glared at the grinning balloon through the brown fog. With his paws busy acting as a mask, he couldn't throw any punches. But, that's fine. Blue smirked as he flipped himself back upright. He swung his right leg a few times in the air, swishing the gas around. Even if he couldn't use his arms... he still had his legs, after all.

"Keeh!" Blue's eyes snapped to his left. Holes appeared in the fog as Zubat sent several more air blades after him. He bent low and let the first blade travel over his head. Then, he leapt into the air and somersaulted over the rest. His long leap landed him right next to Koffing.

"Whoa?!" He saw the gas bag's eyes open wide as he spun around on the spot. Extending his right leg, Blue delivered a fierce roundhouse kick right into Koffing's grinning mug. The force behind the strike sent Koffing tumbling through the air for several seconds before skidding into the dirt.

"K – Koffing?! What are you doing?!"

Blue heard Zubat screech in astonishment. Smirking, he chased after the fallen Koffing, preparing to boot him away like a ball. But, at the instant he reached the gas bag, Zubat screeched.

"Koffing, do it now!"

Sensing danger, Blue stopped his dash and looked down at Koffing. A stupid grin was plastered on the putrid ball's face, his eyes rolled in their sockets until they were both directed at Blue. Koffing retracted all of his holes and nubs and closed his mouth. Blue's eyes opened wide as he recognized this sequence of events. He tried to jump away, but something sharp struck the back of his left leg, making him tumble backward in pain.

"Gah!" Blue released his grip on his mouth and cried out in pain. He immediately regretted doing so, as a rush of disgusting gas flowed into his lungs, making him twitch and shudder as the rancid stench ravaged his senses. As he was bent over on the ground, retching, he could feel something warm dribbling out of his new wound.

"Keh, heh, heh! You're not so tough after all, are you?" He heard Zubat cackle from somewhere behind the putrid smokescreen. "Well, it's not over yet! Koffing, give him a taste of what he did to us!"

"Whoaaaa ho ho ho!"

A startling flash of light erupted from Koffing's body. A series of loud popping noises followed afterward. Blue tried to get away, but now that both of his legs were crippled, he couldn't even find the strength to stand up. Growling, he turned his head away from Koffing and covered his face with his arms.

* * *

"I'm sorry Fée. I never meant to weigh you down with the problems of an old granny."

I shook my head and put down the soup – stained cloth in my paws. Turning around, I gave a warm smile to the tired – looking Mismagius. She rested in her old chair, filling the room with quiet creaking noises as she rocked it back and forth. The silver locket was hovering in front of her as she stared at it with a sad look expression on her face.

"There's nothing you need to apologize about, Mismagius." I said as I walked up to the foot of her chair. I looked up into her face and shook my head again, "If anything, I'm glad you told me. Otherwise, I would've kept thinking the Panacea was just an amazing treasure instead it being... well, something much different."

I closed my eyes and patted the ribbon on my ear, "I wish I had known how much pain that the Panacea had brought you and Brin." My mouth curled into a frown as I felt a wave of disgust rise up in the pit of my stomach," I should be the one apologizing. Blue and I, we barged into your forest without understanding the whole situation and made a whole mess of things for you, Oro and Brin."

I felt a soft cloth touch the top of my head. I looked up and saw Mismagius shaking her head at me with a small smile on her face.

"You're wrong, Fée," she said as she touched my face with her cloak, "I also made a mistake in believing you and your friend were enemies. Perhaps, if I was a little less impatient, we would've been able to meet under much better circumstances." Mismagius let go of my face and gave me a quiet chuckle, "Still, I am glad that you and your friend paid our forest a visit."

"How so?" I asked as one of my ears perked up in curiosity.

"It was never my desire for Brin to live alone in the forest, surrounded by silent trees and only having Oro and I as company." Mismagius said as she leaned back in her rocking chair, "Delphox, Duskull and I always wanted Brin to be amongst other Pokémon her age. She had very little friends back at the city, having always been isolated and barred from meeting others out of fear that she would be exploited."

She paused to let out a sad sigh. I reached up and patted her on the hem of the cloak in a reassuring manner. Mismagius gave me a small smile and nodded before she continued her story again.

"When we arrived at the frontier, Duskull and I... we had a bit of an argument." Mismagius said as she shook her head. Her voice was filled with regret and sadness. "Long before he had met Delphox and I, he was a resident of the frontier. As such, he had known of a settlement that existed here. Treasure Town."

I nodded as Duskull's words resurfaced inside of my memory. I remembered how he spoke about being present during the founding of Treasure Town, and how he knew of the Founders. As I thought about it, a question popped up inside of my mind...

"Our ages will shock you immensely if I told you, my dear," Mismagius said as she chuckled at me. I felt my face turn red hot as I realized she read my mind again. I covered my cheeks and averted my gaze from Mismagius as she continued to chuckle at my embarrassment.

"S – so then... what happened next?" I said, pushing my curiosity about their ages out of my thoughts.

"At that time..." Mismagius said, "I was still very shaken up by what occurred during our escape. I had decided that, for the sake of her safety, I did not want Delphox's daughter to be exposed to the outside world any more." She held up her cloak and spun the locket around in the air, "When I heard of Duskull's idea to bring her to Treasure Town, I had dismissed it as an absurd, ridiculous idea. To bring her to an unfamiliar, and possibly dangerous place... it disgusted me."

"B – but Treasure Town isn't like that!" I replied, frowning, "It's filled with nice, friendly Pokémon!"

"Every light has a shadow, Fée." Mismagius replied in a solemn voice. "Back then... that was all I could see." She shook her head and stared at the locket, "And as a result... I pushed Duskull away from Brin and I. I pushed away my dearest friend..."

"I... is that why he lives alone in town...?"

Mismagius held her cloak over her face, covering her sad expression, "He lives alone as well... does he? I see..." With a sigh, she dropped her cloak and said, "Shortly after we... bid farewell to Duskull, I discovered this forest." She pointed out the window, at the trees beyond the ravine. "It was the perfect location for a pair of vagrants looking for shelter. It was difficult for the uninitiated to find, and even harder for one to enter."

"Once I made the forest our new home, I proceeded to raise Brin as if she were my own child. I raised her and taught her in place of her real mother." Mismagius revealed a small smile as she gestured toward the house, "For a Pokémon like me, I have no use for walls or a roof. This house was made for Brin, for her protection and comfort."

"You made this yourself?" I said, a little stunned.

Mismagius chuckled and waved her cloak at me. "No, of course not. Can you imagine somebody as frail as I playing carpenter?"

"N... no, I can't..."

She patted my head with her cloak before pointing out at the forest, "It was thanks to a little friend we discovered living within the forest, long before we had arrived. Oro was but a young Phantump at the time, living alone here amongst the trees." Mismagius let out a longing sigh, "Oh, he was such a darling little thing back then, so shy and cute..."

I tried to imagine Oro when he was young. In my mind, I pictured a tiny tree waddling around the forest, tripping over roots and waving its little stubby branches around. I covered my mouth as a wave of giggles overtook me.

"Since then, he accepted us as his new family. He treated me as if I was his mother, and Brin as his sister." Mismagius said warmly, "It came as a bit of a shock to me when he told me that he wanted to build a house for us. Would you believe that, for such a young Pokémon, he was quite a skilled carpenter?"

"I can see it," I said, smiling at the thought of Oro fitting a door in the wall, "this really is a wonderful house he made."

"Yes, I think so too." Mismagius agreed with a nod, "Meeting Oro made living in this forest... a little livelier. It truly made me happy to see Brin have a friend..."

Despite what she said, I saw the smile on Mismagius' face curl into a frown. She looked down and covered her eyes with her hat as she spoke.

"However... even though I knew that we were safe from danger inside of our sanctuary, I always knew deep inside my heart that this wasn't what Delphox would've wanted."

"What would've Delphox wanted?" I asked.

"Delphox always spoke about how she wanted Brin to live a normal, happy life. She wanted her daughter to go out and experience the world, to meet many friends, and eventually... for her start her own family." Mismagius sighed and dropped the silver locket, leaving it on the rocking chair.

"Ever since we began living here, Brin became more and more withdrawn. She feared anything that existed beyond the boundary of the forest. For her, the entire world was our forest."

"But... wouldn't it be dangerous for her to leave?" I said, "I mean, she still harbors that incredible power, doesn't she? It would make sense for her to want to stay away from anyone who would want to exploit her."

"It has been a long time since Brin first displayed her power back at the city," Mismagius said, "from what I've gleaned from you, I assume the idea of an all – curing Panacea has passed on into a simple rumor."

"It.." I paused in the middle of my sentence as a thought came to my mind. Before today, I had only heard of the Panacea through Dusknoir's books. And even then, there were Pokémon like Chimecho who were opposed and skeptical to the very existence of such a thing.

"Furthermore," Mismagius continued, "we live in the frontier. A land filled with dreams and legends. What is one legend of an all – curing medicine against the many, many other fanciful tales that exist out there?" A dry chuckle came from her mouth as she shook her head, "This must be what Duskull believed back then."

"He knew that Brin would be safe there...!" I said in an excited voice, understanding what Mismagius meant, "even back at Treasure Town, there's always wild rumors and gossip flying everywhere. Every day, there's always some kind of amazing new story. Like a treasure being buried in a volcano, or even an entire lake that floats in the air!" I felt a smile come on to my face as I thought deeper about it, "Something like an all – curing Panacea... it could be the topic of the day... but then it would be gone the next!" I giggled and added, "Plus, no one would suspect the 'legendary, all – curing medicine' to be a Pokémon!"

"Hm..." Mismagius murmured as she covered her face with her cloak. She looked away from me as she began to mumble something inaudible to herself. I leaned in close to try and satisfy my curiosity, but there was no need in the end.

"Fée," I felt myself jump back out of surprise. Mismagius was holding her cloak toward me, pointing at the Explorer's Pack around my side. "would you mind showing me Duskull's letter once more?"

"I don't mind," I reached down and pulled the torn paper out of my bag. With an apologetic look on my face, I handed it over to Mismagius. "I'm sorry it's a little ripped up. Blue got a little bit careless with it earlier."

"It's quite alright," Mismagius said as she turned toward the fireplace. As she neared it, a purple aura surrounded the pot of soup. It floated off the fireplace on its own and hung itself on a hook next to the hearth. I watched, a little confused, as Mismagius stood in front of the fire.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

A chuckle came back as her reply. Mismagius held the letter up to her mouth and gave it a light kiss. Then, to my utter surprise, she dropped it into the flames.

"Aaah!" I shouted and ran over as fast as I could to try and catch it, but it was too late. The old parchment was buried deep inside of the raging flames. Blackened holes appeared on the paper, ruining Duskull's fancy script as tongues of flame poked through the surface. A quiet whimper escaped my throat as I watched the letter turn into a tiny ball of soot.

I turned toward Mismagius, who was watching the fireplace with a mystifying expresson on her face. "Why did you do that?" I asked, "That was a letter from your old friend! Why did you burn it?"

Mismagius held her cloak up to her face and made a muffled chuckle as she turned away from the flames. With a shake of her head, she floated over to the other side of the house, where the entrance was located. I shut my eyes as she pulled the door open, letting the cool, forest wind flow inside and blow out the fire.

"Fée," I heard Mismagius call my name through the sound of the wind. I opened my eyes and saw her standing beside the entrance. She held out her cloak toward me, beckoning me to follow her, "I have yet another favor to ask of you. Would you mind humoring this old lady once more?"

Before I could even ask what it was, Mismagius' cloaked body phased through the wall and out of the house. The door was left open, creaking in the wind. I closed the flap on my bag and quickly ran after her. Turning around, I stared at the now – empty fireplace. Even in the darkened room, I could still see the silver locket glinting on top of the rocking chair.

Shaking my head, I turned back toward the door and ran through it. Outside, I spotted Mismagius hovering just a ways in the distance atop the vine bridge.

"Hey!" I shouted after her pale silhouette as I ran toward the bridge, "Mismagius! Where are you going?"

Mismagius turned around as I reached the edge of the ravine. Her expression greeted me as I stood in front of her, looking up. Even though we were standing outside in the cold, I felt as though I was being warmed up just by seeing her warm, motherly smile.

"Fée," she said as she wrapped her cloak around me, shielding me from the wind, "I may be asking for too much, but would you please listen to my request?"

"What is it?" I asked, nodding, "If it's not too big of a favor, I'll do whatever I can to help you out."

"Thank you, Fée. I am truly grateful to have met you and your friend, Blue." Mismagius said, chuckling in the wind, "And I believe that Brin thinks so as well." She made a quiet chuckle, "She was so overjoyed when you expressed interest in that book of hers. It was such a surprise to see her so full of glee like that. I had half expected her to start speaking right then, and there."

"O – oh... I didn't do anything, really," I said, feeling my face grow a little hot, "I just recognized her book, that's all."

Mismagius chuckled into my ear and said, "I appreciate your honesty, Fée." She said as she wrapped her cloak tighter around me, "But it doesn't change the fact that you've made my daughter happier than she had been in years. Both you, and your partner."

Mismagius let go of me, floating toward the bridge. I held my ruff with my paw, feeling the lingering warmth that she left inside of me. I still couldn't shake away that feeling of confusion as I followed after Mismagius across the bridge.

"So what is this favor you asked of me?" I wondered, realizing that she hasn't told me yet, "Is it about the books still?"

Mismagius shook her head, her mouth still curled up in a smile, "No, it is not." She continued to float toward the forest, leaving me feeling confused.

"Then what is it?" I asked again, feeling frustrated.

Mismagius continued to ignore my questions, and instead floated over to the other side of the ravine. She paused and turned to look at the forest, covering her mouth with her cloak.

"Your partner... he's badly injured, isn't he?" Mismagius said, "His leg... it'll never heal on its own. The wound is far too severe for any berry or salve to cure."

Both of my ears shot up as Mismagius suddenly brought up the topic of Blue's injury. I hurried myself next to her and held the hem of her cloak with my paws, all my frustration flew away as soon as I heard that.

"T – that's right! His leg... he got it injured while he was protecting me from a horde of Kabuto a few days ago." I looked up at Mismagius' face and told her, "That's... that's why we came here. We thought we could find the Panacea Elixir and use it to cure his wounds."

"And it shall," Mismagius announced, making my eyes open wide. I let go and took a few steps back, gaping at the smiling Pokémon.

"B – but..." I shook my head several times, feeling bewildered at her sudden reply, "Didn't you say it was dangerous for Brin to use her powers? I'm think... no, I'm _sure_ that Blue would refuse to have her treat him if he knew what it did."

"Even if it meant living with only one leg for the rest of his life?"

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came out. What she said... it seemed like a very likely thing that Blue would do. Even though I've only known Blue for a few days, I've became very aware of how his personality is. He would say that he was fine, that he could tough it out and deal with the pain.

I felt my eyes become watery as a realization hit me. When given the choice, Blue would never allow anyone other than himself be harmed. Even if it meant healing him, he would refuse like he always would. I imagined him wearing his dumb, confident grin as he shook his head at Brin. I held my paw up to my face, trying to stem my tears before they flowed out. Why did he have to be such a stubborn idiot?

"...I see," the sound of Mismagius' voice made me look up. Her face was blurry from the tears in my eyes. I saw her cloak move as she touched my face. "Do not fret, Fée. I am sure that Brin would not mind helping out your friend."

I heard her chuckle as she wiped the tears off my face, "All you need to do is convince him. From what I could tell, Blue is a very tenacious and strong – willed young thing. But is no fool. He knows his limits, but he endures it for your sake. It is quite admirable, if not a little reckless."

"T – that sounds like him... it really does," I said, feeling a smile work its way onto my face.

"However," Mismagius' smile became a smirk as she curled her cloak under my chin, craning my head up so we saw eye – to – eye, "If he is truly as stubborn as you say, then it is up to you to break that steel facade he wears. Brin will agree to help him, that is certain. But it is you, his closest friend, who must convince him to accept her help."

"You think so...?" I said, staring at Mismagius with a hopeful look on my face.

"To let you in on a little secret..." Mismagius closed in next to my face and whispered into my ear, "I have seen into his mind. You, Fée, hold a large portion of his heart captive. I'm sure with a little sweetness, you can possibly convince him to do anything."

I tilted my head to the side, confused. I didn't understand what she meant by holding his heart captive. On instinct, my mind went and imagined me holding Blue inside of a jail cell. But, what did Mismagius mean by sweetness? I couldn't figure that part out, no matter how hard I thought about it.

"Oh my, the wonders of youth..." Mismagius let out a loud, gleeful laugh as I puzzled over her words. She held onto her wide hat as she shuddered from her glee. I puffed out my cheeks in frustration. This must be what Blue feels like whenever he doesn't understand something.

"S – so, what was this favor you wanted then?" I said in a rather shrill voice, not bothering to hide my annoyance. "You never told m –"

My words were cut off by a sudden loud noise in the distance. As I turned toward it, a powerful shockwave careened through the forest. The sheer force of the blast threw me off my feet, and onto the ground. I was shocked, and bewildered. What was that? What just happened?

"W – what was that...?" I heard Mismagius speak in a low, fearful voice as I scrambled back onto my feet. Although her body was unfazed by the shockwave, she wore an aghast expression on her face.

That sound... I've heard it somewhere before. My mind was working at full tilt, scrabbling together every shard of memory I had in an effort to try and piece together what that sound was. A blast... a shockwave... an explosion...!

That was it. It was an explosion! A sudden flashback hit me, reminding me of when I first met Blue at the Beach Cave... The Beach Cave...?

"No way... it can't be...!"

That sound that we just heard... it was the exact same sound that Koffing made when he exploded during our fight with him and Zubat! Does that mean something exploded inside of the forest? But... why? And who?

"That sound... it came from Brin's berry grove...!" Mismagius gasped. I turned toward her, my eyes wide and my face pale.

I knew firsthand just how powerful those explosions are. If Brin and Blue were both caught in it... then...!

"No! Mismagius, we have to go there, now!"


	24. And you hurt my partner, Fée!

**•   
Chapter 23**

**"And you hurt my partner, Fée!"**

* * *

Blue could only watch in horror as Koffing unleashed his attack. In an instant, the forest vanished right before his very eyes. A blinding white light erupted from the center of the grove, wiping out everything in his sight. A thunderous roar blew out his ears, reducing his hearing to nothing more than a dull buzz.

A shockwave slammed into Blue with a force akin to an avalanche. He felt his arms get blown to the side, breaking his guard, and leaving his face and body unprotected from the blast. Seconds later, his feet were torn off the ground, throwing him off balance. The next thing he knew, he had been thrown into the air by the force created by the explosion.

He couldn't even feel the pain that was no doubt ravaging his body at the moment. The sheer intensity of the blast had dulled all of his senses, leaving him with no way to tell just how broken he was. Blue opened his mouth to scream, to howl in pain and suffering. But, no matter how hard he forced himself to yell, not a single sound came from his throat. Not even a single whimper.

Blue's shattered body struck one of the massive trees surrounding the grove. The collision sent a horrifying _crack!_ into the air. The sound echoed over and over again as it traveled through the forest. Blue's body left a trail of bright red as he slid down the trunk. When he hit the ground, his broken and battered form crumpled into a blue and red heap by the roots.

"...kuh..."

Blue coughed out a smattering of red from his mouth. As he leaned his heavy body against the tree, he opened his eyes and glanced down at his body. A grimace appeared on his face. Seeing the state that he was in, he was glad that most of his limbs had been numbed by the blast. Otherwise he'd be screaming in pain right now.

He tried to move his arms, but all he managed to do was raise it a single inch up into the air before it flopped back down. It was like a pair of weights here attached to his wrists, and ankles, making it near impossible for him to move at all. Blue opened his mouth to growl in frustration, but the rush of air into his throat only elicited more pained coughs.

He messed up... Blue grumbled at his own idiocy. Just because he had felt a little better, he could beat them through sheer force. If he hadn't been so overconfident, he could've been able to see that trap coming... and as a result of his cockiness...

"...kuh!" another painful cough erupted from his mouth. His head fell forward as his body buckled under the force of the cough, forcing his consciousness to waver. His left paw hit the ground, just in time to stop him from collapsing into the dirt. As he propped himself up with his arm, he felt a stinging pain within him.

His dulled senses were returning, and with it, the pain from his accumulated wounds and injuries. At first, it was like walking into a thorny bush. Then, as seconds flew by, his agony intensified. The cuts and bruises that covered his arms and torso felt like burning hot coals. His left leg refused to move, and his right... he couldn't even feel his right leg anymore. It was as if it had disappeared entirely.

He couldn't see anything past the massive crater in the middle of the grove. There was a huge, no... massive wall of black smoke obscuring his sight. Blue couldn't tell whether or not Zubat and Koffing were still present in the forest. If they were... what could he do to them in his current situation? His arms... his legs...

A rustling sound from behind him drew his attention. He turned around and saw Brin peeking out from behind the tree he had slammed into. Her face looked like it had been stained by tears, and her expression was that of abject terror. But, to Blue's relief, she looked like she was uninjured by the blast. Sighing, Blue mustered up whatever strength he had in order to give the Braixen a grin.

Brin shook her head and ran over to his side. He shouldn't be smiling at a time like this, she thought. Even though she was no expert in Pokémon health, it was plain as day to her that Blue was in a terrible shape. She couldn't even bring herself to look at him. His wounds were too horrible for her to bear.

"...h – hey..."

Blue's voice was almost inaudible. He let out a tired groan as he tried to pull himself further up the tree so he could look into Brin's eyes. He lifted his leaden arm and tried to place it atop her head, but it didn't even reach halfway up her chest before his fading strength failed him. Before it fell back to his sides, Brin hurried and reached out her hands, grabbing his paw and holding it to her chest.

"...g – good... you... you're alrig –" his words were cut off by an onset of violent coughs. Brin cried out in shock and squeezed his paw in an effort to comfort him, but it was of little use. His pitiful body continued to shudder and tremble as ragged coughs continued to ravage him.

Tears rolled down Brin's cheeks as she watched her new friend continue to suffer in front of her. She shut her eyes and pulled his paw up to her face, hugging it tight. How could this have happened? But a few moments ago, the two of them were walking through the forest together. And now, her friend... her friend was...!

Blue felt her warm tears drip onto his paw. His vision was blurred. In his eyes, all the colors and shapes surrounding him were wavering, blending together into an indecipherable mess. But there was one thing in this mess of a world he was sure of, and it was that Brin was crying. It made him sick to his stomach. How could he have made her worry?

"D... don't cry..." raising his right paw, he tried to wipe away the tears on her cheek. But, as he lifted his arm but an inch, he felt a screaming pain attack him. It forced him to look away from Brin, as a wave of nausea began to rise up within him. A pitiful rattle escaped his lips as his head drooped down. Then, he stopped moving.

Brin let out a loud, concerned cry and wrapped her arms around his head. Right before his muzzle struck the ground, the Braixen pulled him up and leaned him against her. Cradling his head, she tried to comfort him by pressing his head against her chest. She could feel his ragged breathing against her fur, and his irregular heartbeat beneath her hand.

As the minutes passed, she could feel the Riolu's breathing calming down. His ragged breaths had become quiet gasps, while his heartbeat had stabilized. Yet, it didn't calm Brin. Instead, it only made her panic even further.

The heat within Blue's body was fading away.

Soft sobs escaped her mouth as she tried to preserve his warmth by hugging him tighter. In a desperate attempt to heat him up, she pressed his chest against her own, matching their heartbeats together. As she closed her eyes, a horrible thought entered her head. Or rather, a memory. That one dark night... that terrible scream... it all came flooding into her thoughts like a tidal wave. Without even realizing it, the Braixen began to tremble and shiver as frightening images began to flash inside of her mind.

Icy terror began to grip her heart. These were memories she thought she had buried away long ago. Memories that she never wanted to unearth ever again. But... this situation... it was just like that night. That night... she saw her mother fall right in front of her eyes. She remembered hearing Mismagius scream at her as she ran toward her mother.

She remembered touching her mother's chest. She remembered feeling her warmth slowly disappear underneath her paw.

She remembered trying in vain to wake her.

She remembered not being able to do a thing.

And now...

She saw herself holding her friend. Trembling and crying, just like that night back then. Could she do anything to save him? Of course she could. She had that power. She had the power to save anybody, didn't she?

But, she knew it came at a heavy price. Mismagius, Duskull, not even her mother... none of them knew the full extent of her miraculous power. When she had healed Duskull during that one fateful day, it forced Brin to realize just how dangerous her power was. Not to others, no... but to herself.

Her power... it was no Panacea. It was no amazing miracle cure. Instead, it was more like a replacement. It took her own strength... her own aura, and used it as a salve for the injured. In effect, it was like pulling off her own arms and legs as a replacement for someone else's. Which is why... she couldn't just use her powers for anything... for anyone.

Tears welled up inside of Brin's eyes as she felt Blue's heartbeat slow down even further. Was she willing to just let her new friend disappear just like that? Even though she had a way to save him inside of her right now? His wounds... to replace every single one of them would take an inordinate amount of her own strength. Even if it was just his right leg, who knows what would happen to her is she had used her power?

Can she just let him be taken away like that? Without even lifting a finger?

"Nn..." a single word appeared in her heart. That one word spread out from her chest and throughout her body like a wildfire. She felt it enter her mouth. The word stood at the tip of her tongue, waiting for her to speak it.

She had no reason to refuse.

"_No!_"

Her eyes snapped open at the sound of her own voice. In the instant she did, she felt a raging flame explode out from within her heart. A searing flame burst from her chest, spreading a burning heat out and into her arms, legs and even her tail. She felt her fur prickle with heat as her tail flicked upward. This sensation... this strength...! It was like her entire body had become an inferno!

Brin knew what she had to do. She was given this power to save others. Therefore, she would use it to save her beloved new friend!

With a loud cry, she wrapped her burning arms around him.

* * *

"Keh..."

Zubat groaned in pain as he peeled himself off the ground. Wiping away the dirt that caked his face, he shook his head and coughed. He hadn't expected Koffing's explosion to be so strong. In fact, it was twice... no, three times stronger than the one back at the cave. Feeling his wings aching, Zubat struggled to flap himself back into the air.

The sheer destruction that Koffing's explosion had wrought was spectacular. Horrifying, but spectacular. Upturned dirt, burnt up leaves and seared twigs were littered all over the once – peaceful grove. All that was left of the Mago trees were four, charred stumps lying on their sides, their exposed, feeble roots fluttering in the wind.

A stunned chuckle emanated from Zubat as he got closer to the carnage. A gigantic crater had been dug out in the center of the grove, and in the center of it was a smoldering blob of purple. Zubat lowered himself into the crater and landed next to the unconscious Koffing.

"Oi, you awake?" he prodded his partner with his wing. Koffing didn't budge. Instead, his mouth opened up and expelled a plume of brown gas. Zubat averted his head, and closed his mouth. Even though he's immune to Koffing's poison, it was still unpleasant to breathe in his stench.

"Keh, still asleep," Zubat slapped Koffing's face out of annoyance. Like the poke he gave Koffing earlier, it had no effect on the snoozing gas ball. With a shake of his head, Zubat flapped his way out of the crater and back into the grove.

Explosion was a strong, and devastating move, Zubat mused. But it wasn't something that they can just pull out any time they want. It's almost too destructive, especially since Koffing somehow managed to power it up. Zubat wondered if it was because his partner willingly self – destructed on his own instead of doing it by accident like before.

"Feh," Zubat smirked. Either way, it didn't matter. Right before the explosion stunned him, he saw that Riolu get blown away by the blast. No matter how confident or how cocky that stupid Riolu was, there was no way he'd be able to get up from a point – blank explosion right in his stupid face!

With a nasty smirk on his face, Zubat turned toward where the Riolu was. Without a doubt, he must be smarting from the attack. Oh, he couldn't wait to rub it into that smarmy brat's face.

"So! Had enough, brat?" he announced across the silent grove, sneering. He waited for the brat to reply. When he didn't get any, he decided to say something more. "That shows you what happens if you mess with Team Skull, keh, heh!"

There was no response from the Riolu. No snarky comeback, no rude remarks, not even a twitch to show that he had heard Zubat's taunts. Confusion crossed Zubat's face, replacing his arrogant sneer with a scowl. Was that blasted Riolu trying to rile him up by ignoring him on purpose?

A huge plume of smoke was emanating from the center of the grove, separating Zubat and the brat with an impenetrable wall of black. But such things didn't matter to Zubat, as he could tell that the Riolu was still there. With his sensitive hearing, he could hear that brat's breathing and heartbeat from miles away. And without a doubt, that brat was still inside the grove. In fact, he was just a few feet away from him.

His sneer returned to his face as he made his way over to where the Riolu was resting. If that brat was unconscious from the explosion, then he'll go and wake him up with a slap or two with his wings.

"Heh... are you trying to sneak away from me?" Zubat cackled to himself, "What was all that bragging earlier? Were you just spitting air?"

There was no reply again. His ego dented, Zubat ground his teeth together in frustration. Half the fun of taunting your opponents was shutting down their retorts! Prickles of anger were appearing inside his head as he flapped his way around the smokescreen. Then, an idea popped into his mind, making his fanged mouth curl into a smirk.

"You're just as bad as that cowardly Eevee," he snickered, "running away from anything that scares you. Do I scare you, Riolu? Keh, heh, heeee – _eeagh!_"

His taunt was cut short, as something fast, something _hard,_ slammed into his big mouth. If he had eyes, they'd be bulging out of his skull right about now as he was thrown out of the sky. With a loud _thud!, _Zubat crashed into the dirt with his wings splayed out in an embarrassing pose.

"Agh – ggh, agh!" the swears that tried to escape Zubat's mouth only came out as unintelligible burbles. Confused and furious, Zubat jammed one of his wings inside of his mouth.

"_Gehabwa!?_"

It was a smooth, circular rock. His jaw dropped out of utter bewilderment and shock, allowing the stone to roll away. Coughing, he pulled himself off his back and spat out the lingering dirt and silt on his tongue.

"Wh – _hack!_ – Who did that?!" he screeched in fury, swinging his head around the grove. His sensitive ears picked up the presence of two more Pokémon in the grove. One of which was dangerously close to him.

"Zubat...!"

Zubat turned his face toward the source of the voice, just in time for a paw to slap him across the cheek. A stinging pain exploded from the blow, making Zubat tumble away, screeching in agony.

"Gyeeeh! Eevee!" He snarled at his assailant, "What are you doing here?!"

"I could ask the same of you!" Fée retorted, lowering her head, and sending an angry glare at the bat. "What did you do? What was that explosion? _Where's Blue and Brin?!_"

"Keh!" Zubat quickly took to the skies as the brown – furred Pokémon charged at him. Realizing that she had missed, Fée planted her feet in the dirt and looked up at Zubat, anger burning in her eyes.

"Zubat!" she snarled at him, "Answer me!"

Zubat knew how dangerous that Eevee's tackles were. He had seen what happened to Koffing when he had taken a direct hit from one of them back at the Beach Cave, as well as how it felt when the big purple lug slammed into him as a result of that attack. That Eevee, despite her cowardice, had an incredible strength behind her blows!

"Keh, heh, heh..." It didn't matter though. If that Eevee only had tackles, then all he had to do was stay out of her range! After all, he had wings! There was no way she's be able to hit hi–!

"Haaah!"

Zubat's thoughts were cut short as Fée tilted her head back. Somehow, someway, she was hovering right in front of him. Despite that they were a couple feet up in the air, she was there. And she was about to headbutt him!

_Clonk!_

"Keegh!" a pained screech leaked out of Zubat's gaping maw as he was thrown out of the skies. For the third time today, Zubat tasted dirt on his tongue. "Bleegh..."

"Thanks, Mismagius," Fée sent a grateful nod to the specter holding her in the air. Mismagius returned her nod, and floated the both of them back onto solid ground. Once Fée's feet touched the dirt again, she charged toward the stunned Zubat and pounced on top of him, planting her feet firmly on his wings and pinning him down.

"Geeh!" Zubat screeched at Fée as he tried to wriggle out of her grasp, but her weight was too much for him to struggle out of. All he could so was spit, and screech at her as she pressed harder against his wings.

"Answer me, Zubat!" Fée shouted in his face, "What did you do?"

"What did _I_ do?" Zubat sneered back, "I didn't do anything! Keh, heh!"

He jerked his head toward the smoldering crater beside them and smirked, "It was all Koffing! Keh, heh!"

"Koffing? He's here too?"

"We're Team Skull!" Zubat screeched, "Of course he's here with me! We're partners, you numbskull!"

"Grr!" Fée glared at the snickering Zubat. She pressed even harder against his wings, eliciting a pained squeak from him.

"Ouch!"

"How did you find this place?" Fée snarled at him, "Nobody other than Blue and I knew about this forest!"

"Keh, heh! Isn't it obvious?" he smirked, "You brats didn't even consider that you were being followed the whole time!"

"What?!"

"You two didn't even notice as we tailed you, all the way from that ghastly house to the crossroads!"

"B – but..." Fée was flabbergasted as she goggled at Zubat. "There was no way... we didn't see you two at all!" she glanced over at the crater, where Koffing was lying. "I would've known! I'd be able to recognize that disgusting stench anywhere! There's no way you could've masked that!"

"Keh! That's what separates the apprentices from the experienced!" Zubat snickered, "It's all in the tools, you fool!"

"Tools?"

"Orbs, berries! Keh, heh!" Zubat turned his face toward the crater, his smirk growing wider at Fée's confusion. "All it took was an Invisify Orb to hide ourselves, and some Pecha Berries to hide my partner's stench!"

Zubat's voice deepened as he sneered at her, "I could smell that minty scent coming from that Riolu back at town... I knew that the two of you were snacking on Pechas. It wasn't hard to figure out a plan to avoid your idiotic noses."

"You..." despite her dislike toward the bullying duo, Fée couldn't help but feel a little impressed at Zubat's ingenuity. Shaking her head, she wiped off the stunned expression on her face and returned to glaring at Zubat. "Tell me why you're here! And what you did to the grove!"

"Look at that face..." Zubat muttered in an icy – cold voice, "you think just because you grew a little backbone, you'd be able to just order me around like this? Keh... heh... heh..."

Fée felt a chill go down her spine as Zubat began to cackle icily. Nervousness, and a little fear rose up inside Fée, forming a heavy lump inside her throat. Risking a gulp, Fée tried to quash that familiar sensation welling up, and tried to maintain her angry glare at Zubat.

However, such an act of anxiousness didn't escape Zubat's notice. His cackles grew louder and faster, with every 'keh, heh' he emitted sending chills down Fée's spine. In his shrewd mind, he knew that fear wasn't such an easy thing to get rid of. And... of all Pokémon to be afraid of him, this Eevee was the easiest to terrify.

"Don't you remember...?" he spoke in a slow, meticulous voice at Fée as his mouth curled into a nasty smirk, "That dark, rainy day... when Koffing and I attacked you in the middle of the road..."

"S – shut up!" Fée's retort was weak, and her voice was wavering.

"You were such a coward then," Zubat sneered at her, "cowering, trembling in front of us. Begging for us to just go away. Keh, heh... well, I suppose you're still a coward now, aren't you?"

"Gh...!" Fée shuddered involuntarily as another wave of ice rushed through her body. Her legs began to tremble as her mind began to vividly replay the events of that day. She shook her head and tried to throw that thought out of her mind, to quash that memory. Being forced to remember that horrid day... it was like Zubat had forced her to swallow an entire iceberg.

"Keh, heh...!" Zubat could tell that her strength was waning. For all her bluster, she was still just a little coward! All this brat needed was one more push, and he'll be free from her clutches! He opened his mouth and let out a loud screech at the terrified Eevee, "You're nothing more than a coward! You can't even do anything now, can you? That's why... once a coward, always a coward!"

It was like a piece of glass had shattered inside of Fée's heart, breaking it into a thousand pieces. Strength and willpower fled her body, along with whatever warmth she had left. In that one instant of weakness, Zubat took his chance.

"Keeh!" With a powerful flap of his wings, he threw the Eevee off him and soared away into the air. Fée tumbled into the dirt, rolling several feet away before flopping motionless onto the ground. Tears began to roll down her face as she curled up into a pitiful ball in a fit of self – loathing.

"Fée!" Mismagius hurried over to the Eevee's side, concerned and afraid. As she lowered herself beside the poor girl, she noticed that her face was wet with glistening tears. In an effort to console her, Mismagius wrapped her cloak around the trembling Fée.

"N – no... I'm... I'm sorry...!" Fée's voice was cracking as she sobbed into Mismagius' cloak, "I didn't mean to... what he said... it just... no...!"

Although Mismagius didn't know what sort of connection Fée had with that cretin, Zubat. It was obvious to her that whatever relationship they had, it was one that had hurt Fée deeply in the past. If it was possible for mere words to reduce her to tears like this, then that one thing must've been very traumatic. Mismagius continued to hold the sobbing girl, trying to ease her fears as much as she could.

"You're a cretin," Mismagius muttered in a quiet voice. "to think that a Pokémon would stoop so low as to harm another like this. You're no better than the Pokémon back at the city..."

"Keeeeh!" Zubat heard it all with his sensitive ears. Irritation, and indignation welled up inside his purple body as he pointed his wing at Mismagius. "I don't know who you are, but you're being an eyesore!"

Mismagius' head swiveled around to glare at the flapping purple Pokémon in the air. She opened her mouth to snarl at him, but before she could even get a single word out, something sharp and blade – like struck her face.

* * *

My eyes widened in horror as I watched Brin's mother fall onto the ground. With a scream threatening to escape my mouth, I rushed over to her side. My paws flew up to my mouth as I saw a purple gash stretching from her chin up to her forehead. Her wide – brimmed hat had been nicked, with a cut going straight through from the edge to the center.

"Mismagius...!" I threw my paws around her body, shaking her in a desperate attempt to rouse her. "Mismagius, are you alright? Please... talk to me!"

"Mrgh..." A low groaning sound left her lips, announcing to me that she was still conscious. I felt a flood of relief as I saw her mouth flutter a bit. I quickly took a closer look at her wound, and much to my relief, it wasn't anything too severe.

I didn't know whether or not such a shallow cut would even mean anything to a Pokémon like Mismagius. But even then, it still made me feel much better to know that, although she was unconscious, Mismagius was alright. I threw my paws around her, hugging her tight as she had done for me.

"Keh, heh, heh...!" I heard that awful Zubat cackle somewhere behind me. Just the sound of his voice filled me with a myriad of emotions, "I thought that the ghost would be a threat... who knew she was just an old, fragile granny?! Keeeeh, heh, heh!"

How... how could he be so cruel? How could any Pokémon say such things after harming another? I just couldn't understand why Zubat... no, why this _cretin_ was being so heartless...!

All the fear... all that coldness inside of me was melting away. Once more, I felt that powerful flame light up inside of my heart, breaking away all the ice that had frozen me earlier. My legs, which were paralyzed by fear before, were now tensed up and begging me to move. I felt every single strand of fur on my body stand up as burning anger began to build up within my chest.

"You... you're horrible...!" My words were laced with anger as I turned to face Zubat. I looked up into the sky and sent him a glare filled with fire. "You're nothing more than a cretin!"

"Is that all you got?" Zubat cackled back, "At least think of something more insulting, you coward!"

There was that word again. That one word that hurt me so much before...

"Y – you may call me whatever you want..."

But that word... didn't I already conquer it a while ago?

"But there is one thing I know..."

That's right... I did. To the me of the present... that word shouldn't hold any meaning to me any longer...!

"And it's that..."

After all... it was him who taught me that...

"_I'm not a coward!_"

An astonished look flitted across Zubat's features, with his mouth wide open in a dumb – looking way. His wings stopped flapping for a fraction of a second, no doubt affected by my loud shout. That was all the time I wanted.

The Explorer's Pack around my neck was thrown off as I pulled it open. There, lying inside in a jumble, were my clay berry pots. Taking one of them out by my teeth, I took aim and spun around on the spot. Using the momentum from my spin, I let go of the pot and sent it flying toward the horrid cretin flying in the air.

"Keeh?!"

Unfortunately, Zubat recovered just in time to avoid my projectile. He had flapped his wings, giving him just enough lift to fly over my berry pot.

"Keh! You think such a half – baked attack will reach me? You're an idiot!"

"Hrrrah!"

Without even giving myself any time to rest, I hurled yet another one of my berry pots at Zubat. I needed to bring him down to the ground so I could reach him with my tackles! This was the only way, and if I could just get a single hit in...!

"Keeeeeh!" To my frustration, he dodged my second pot with ease. A disgusting smirk was on the cretin's face, letting me know just how smug he was about avoiding my attacks.

Scowling, I hurriedly tried to think of another plan. Glancing inside my pack, I noticed that I only had two more pots left. That Pokémon was simply too fast to strike with something as slow as flying pot...!

"What is it, coward? You giving up already?" I growled at Zubat as he sneered at me. "Fine then, it's my turn!"

At first, I thought he was just trying to keep flapping in the air, but it looked much too odd for that. Instead, he looked like he was doing some sort of strange pose in midair by swinging his wings at me. I puzzled over his odd movements for a moment, but I quickly realized that standing still was a terrible idea.

A whistling noise tore through the air, making my ears twitch as I heard it coming toward me. The next thing I knew, something fast, and sharp struck me in the middle of the forehead. I was thrown to the ground from the attack as my head exploded in a stinging pain. Something warm and wet was tricking down my muzzle, staining my fur with a disgusting color.

I reached up and wiped away the red that was getting in my eyes. As I did so, I felt the thin cut on my forehead. This must've been the attack that Zubat used on Mismagius. It was some sort of invisible blade made from air that he could fire from his wings.

"That's not all yet, keh!"

My gaze snapped back to Zubat. He was holding his wings in that peculiar position again, preparing to attack me once more. This time though, I noticed something interesting about his attack... It wasn't actually very painful. In fact, it was more surprising than anything.

"Keeeh!" He screeched at me before firing off yet another one of those invisible blades. My eyes narrowed as I tried to see where the blade was, but it was impossible. Although I could hear the whistling noise nearing me again, I just couldn't tell where the attack was. There is one thing obvious though, and it was that it was going to hit me!

"Hah!" I threw myself to the side as fast as I could. Thankfully, my efforts were rewarded as the whistling soared past me and scored a hit on a tree trunk instead of my face. Turning my head back at Zubat, I watched him take up that pre – firing pose once more. As I saw that, my brain quickly got to work hatching a plan...

"Keeh! Keeh! Keeeeeh!"

Three high – pitched whistling noises traveled toward me as Zubat made frantic swipes with his wings. I broke out into a dash, letting the three blades splatter against the dirt. I ran in circles around Zubat as he continued to fire off more blades at me. I kept a close eye on him as his attacks continued to miss their mark, leaving thin gashes in the dirt and the trees.

"Keeh! Stop moving, you brat!" He screeched at me in anger.

"Make me!" I retorted. Maybe what I said was a little cocky, but it seemed to have a good effect on Zubat, as he screeched again and started launching more blades at me.

That was exactly what I wanted.

"Keeeh!" Zubat held up both of his wings this time, and swung them down at me. A deeper pitched whistle followed suit, informing me that the next blade was something much larger and dangerous than before. If it hit me... then it might be the end of this fight.

But, I wasn't afraid. After all, if it was Blue in this situation right now... he wouldn't have felt a single scrap of fear. A surge of heat erupted inside of my chest, filling me with an overwhelming sense of confidence. I felt the edges of my mouth curl up into a smirk, the exact same smirk that Blue would wear when he was being confident.

Maybe it was because of the similarity between our smiles, but I felt no fear inside of me at all. That great air blade... it wasn't anything to be scared of at all!

"You're finished!"

Zubat's cackle didn't even reach my ears. Once the whistling noise reached its loudest, I let out a loud cry and sprung up into the air. A loud noise exploded underneath me as I heard the air blade strike the dirt, sending a powerful gale bursting upward. The gale caught me on the back, thrusting me further and farther into the air.

"What?! No way!" Zubat's stunned look was burned into my eyes as I approached him at a rapid pace. His wings flapped up and down in a desperate attempt to rise back up into the sky, but it was too late!

I reared back my head and steeled myself for what was about to come.

"Haaaah!"

Crash! For the second time today, I slammed my hard head right into Zubat's astonished face. A satisfying thud resounded as our skulls collided together, with his taking more of a beating than mine. An anguished squeak of pain erupted from his mouth as I watched him flop out of the air and land inside of the crater with a quiet thump.

As for myself, I held out my feet and landed on the soft soil. Shudders ran up my legs as I felt the aftershock from falling from such a high distance. Shaking my legs, I tried to get rid of the numb feeling that covered my limbs.

I stared at the smoldering crater, watching the black smoke rise up from the center like an all – encompassing plume of darkness. A warm, proud feeling was burning inside my chest. A little dorky smile wormed its way onto my face as I tried to wrestle with this new emotion. I defeated Zubat, all on my own...!

The first thing I had noticed was that, with every air blade he launched at me, he had to assume that weird pose in midair first. Every time he did that though, Zubat would float lower and lower toward the ground. It wasn't something he had noticed until he was just in reach of my jumping height. And even then, he even helped me by throwing that big air blade at me, helping me fly farther than I ever could!

"Hee, hee..." I shut my eyes and held my paw over my mouth, unable to contain my mirth. I giggled quietly to myself as I enjoyed the feeling of victory.

_Splat!_

"Geeh!"

My happiness was short lived. All of a sudden, right in the middle of my celebration, something wet, and rancid splattered against my face. As soon as it touched my face, I felt my eyes begin to burn up with a horrible searing feeling. I squeezed my eyelids tight as I could, trying to keep the stuff away from my eyeballs. I clutched my face with my paws, trying to scrub the goop off, but all it accomplished was transferring the burning feeling onto my legs as well.

"A – aahh..!" I gasped out in pain as I stumbled around the grove, blinded by the goo on my face. "W – what is this? It hurts!"

"Good shot, Koffing..."

Zubat's voice came through from somewhere within the darkness, filling me with a sense of dread. His tone was dripping with ill – hidden fury.

"You... you think that something like that would be able to take us down...?"

Every attempt to open my eyes resulted in searing pain, forcing me to stumble away from Zubat's horrid voice in absolute darkness.

"Just because you grew a little braver..." He was getting closer, and closer... "...doesn't mean anything!"

That terrible whistling noise came careening toward me. A sharp pain exploded on my chest, making me fall forward as I felt my ruff become drenched with warmth. Groaning, I tried to pick myself back up, but another whistling blade cut into my legs, sending me tumbling back down into the dirt.

"Whoa, ho, ho... Zubat, what happened while I was asleep?"

Another voice joined Zubat's. Without a doubt, it was his ball – like partner, Koffing's.

"Take a good look, gas – for – brains!" Zubat sneered, "While you were off snoozing in your little dreamworld, I was busy cleaning up after you!"

"Whoa ho! Isn't that the Eevee from before?" A loud chortle interrupted his words. "Looks like you've found the other half of the brat pair!"

"Keh, heh... yeah, the cowardly half!"

The goop on my face was drying off, allowing me to open my eyes just a sliver. With what little vision I had available, I could just barely make out the silhouettes of Zubat and Koffing hovering over me. The searing pain was still fresh on my paws, as well as that new cut on my leg making me wince. I wanted to get up, I wanted to stand and put some distance between me and the two cretins.

"Not a chance!"

A sharp whistling noise rang out for about a second before it silenced itself on me. I let out an awful scream as I felt a new wound open up on my flank, paralyzing my hind legs with a terrible, burning pain.

Undeterred, I tried to reach forward with my front legs instead. Even if I had to crawl, I had to get away from them! To be this close... it was nothing short of dangerous!

"Look at you... such a pitiful lump on the ground..."

Ignore it... ignore Zubat's mocking sneers...!

"Still trying to run away? What a coward!"

"Whoa, ho, ho..."

Another cut appeared on my body. This time, I felt it strike me on my side, making it hard for me to breathe. I wheezed as curled up on the spot again, trying to catch my breath.

"Tell you what, coward," I heard Zubat land right next to me. I raised up my head to glare at him, but he just slapped me across the face with his wing. Feeling the smarting pain on my cheek, I had no choice but to clutch my face with my paws and drop my head again.

"We'll let you go with what you've deserved today..." Zubat's voice was mocking, snickering at my helplessness. "but you're gonna have to tell us where to find that blasted Panacea...!"

If I told them where the Panacea was... would they just let me go? If I told them Brin's secret, about how she was the one who possessed that power... would they just forget everything and leave me be? All I had to do to stop them for hurting me... was hand over Mismagius' precious treasure. Brin.

...no, there was no way I could do that. Disgust rose up within my throat as I scolded myself for even considering such a stupid thing! If I told them about the Panacea... if I told them about Brin, then everything Mismagius, and Delphox did to protect her would've been pointless! I can't allow these two... these two terrible Pokémon get their clutches on Brin!

After all, if it was Blue... even if he got hurt bad during a fight, he would never just give up! I'm his partner, I have to be just as strong as he was! I have to be just as brave as he was! I needed to be able to protect, just like him!

"Even..." I put in as much anger as I could into my voice. I raised up my head, and filled my gaze with hatred as I glared at Zubat. "...even if you keep hurting me... I would never tell you a thing!"

"Keh," he spat into my face. But, even as his disgusting saliva rolled down my muzzle, I continued to maintain my hateful glare at the cretin. "looks like you chose a bad time to grow a backbone, Eevee..."

Zubat held up his wing to threaten me, but I wasn't fazed. The secret to the Panacea was locked deep inside my heart. No matter how much he hurt me, no matter how much he tried to scare me, I would never spill Brin's secret to these cretins! I funneled all these emotions, all these thoughts into my glare. Showing him, proving to him that I was not scared of his ilk!

"I hate that look in your eyes, Eevee!" He screeched at me, "Why aren't you scared anymore?! You're a coward! You're nothing more than a coward! Be scared!"

"I'm..."

The answer to his question should be obvious. That Blue – like smirk reappeared on my face, filling me with courage. With my flame of bravery burning inside of me, I looked up and sent Zubat the most confident glare I could muster.

"..._I'm not a coward!_"

I told him the truth. There was no doubt in my mind as I strugged back onto my feet. The shocked looks on Zubat and Koffing's faces were more than enough proof to me that what I just said was no lie. My legs were still shaking from the cuts that Zubat gave me, but it wasn't enough to keep me down. I opened my mouth to speak, but as soon as I parted my lips, a scream erupted from somewhere inside the grove.

"_No!_"

Right after we heard that scream, a gust of searing hot wind came billowing toward us. The black wall of smoke that had separated the grove into two halves was blown apart by the sudden gale, scattering the black gas all around the place. It was as if a geyser of wind had erupted from underneath the smokescreen.

Coughing, I covered my nose and eyes with my paws as the noxious smoke blew into my face. I could hear Zubat and Koffing screaming in utter shock and astonishment as the gale continued to blow toward us. After several heated seconds, the hot winds finally died down. I opened my eyes, and saw that the wall of black had been reduced to just tiny wisps of smoke.

"...you never were, Fée."

A cyclone of wind erupted from the center of the grove, blowing away what had remained of the smokescreen. There, standing with his arms folded, his eyes steely, and right in the middle of the windstorm, was a blue – furred Pokémon. Black smoke flitted off his arms and legs as he strode out of the smokescreen's remains with a confident smirk plastered on his face.

"B – Blue!"

Tears welled up in my eyes as I held my paws over my mouth. Relief flooded my entire being as I watched him walk toward us. His gait was steady, with every step he took making my heart beat with joy. My eyes flitted down to his right leg, and I saw something that made my eyes tear up even further. His leg... there were no more scars on his right leg!

"K – keeeh?!" Zubat's screech was filled with astonishment, "H – how are you still standing?! You took an explosion to the face! Something like that should've left you utterly knocked out!"

"Heh..." Blue shrugged in a nonchalant way. He held out his right paw toward Zubat and clenched it into a fist, "Don't you remember what I said to you? I ate the Panacea. It's a medicine that heals all wounds and illnesses."

_Bam! _Blue slammed his fist into the palm of his left paw and said, "Something like an explosion could hardly keep me down!"

"B – but you said you ate the last one!" Zubat turned toward Koffing and screeched, "He did, didn't he!?"

"Y – yeah, he did...!" Koffing was also goggling at Blue in shock, "He said that there were none left for us, because he ate the last Panacea!"

"Sorry Zubat," Blue said as his mouth made a perfect copy of Zubat's sneer, "_I lied_."

"You wha – ageh!"

I couldn't believe my eyes. Just a moment ago, Blue was still several feet away from the three of us. A second later, he had somehow managed to cross that entire distance within a blink of an eye. I looked up in utter shock, and saw –for a brief moment– Blue's fist embedding itself into Zubat's maw.

_Wham! _Zubat vanished from my sight in a streak of purple. A few seconds later, I heard a loud _thud! _ring out from somewhere behind me, followed by a loud screech of pain.

"Z – Zubat?!" Koffing's eyes bulged out as he turned toward Zubat. His voiced was tinged with utter disbelief at what just happened.

"Hey, look this way."

Koffing, for some reason, obeyed Blue's order. As he turned around, a blue – colored streak shot out toward his face.

"Mgeh?!" Koffing made a muffled cry as Blue's open paw clamped town on his mouth. Brown gas wafted out of his mouth as he struggled to get loose, but he just couldn't break away from my partner's powerful grasp!

"Alright, let's go!" Still grinning, Blue hoisted Koffing up above his head. He began to spin his arm around like a windmill, twirling Koffing round and round in a circle. I watched in amazement as his arm became a blue and purple blur. After he had gained enough speed, Blue let go of Koffing's mouth and sent him flying off into the distance. I watched as the second purple streak sailed through the air for a few seconds before he–

_Splat!_

A gross sound rang out as Koffing slammed into one of the tree trunks surrounding the grove. He let out a gas – spewing groan as he slid down the length of the tree. When he hit the ground, he opened his mouth and released a billowing cloud of brown into the air. Even from this distance, I could smell that disgusting stench wafting its way over here.

"Are you alright, Fée?" I heard Blue speak as he patted my side, making me turn my head toward him. I saw his confident, smiling face but a scant few inches away from my own as he knelt beside me.

"Blue..." I felt warm tears well up inside of my eyes again as I saw him so close to me. As I cried in front of him, a desire rose up inside my mind.

I wanted to hug him, to hold him tight. I wanted to let him know just how relieved I was to see him again. I tried to raise up my paws, but a sudden jolt of aching pain inside my body forced me to drop them back down.

So this is how Blue must've felt when he was injured. The thought of that made a wry, depressed – looking grin crawl onto my face. I shook my head. Even when he was this hurt, he still forced himself to hold me, to comfort me. With what little bravery I had left, I quashed that painful ache and tried to lift my paws again. This time, I managed to get them around my friend's neck, and, with a little more force than I intended, yanked his face down to me.

"Whoa!"

His face was right next to mine now. I felt the sides of our muzzles were touching each other as I clung to him as hard as I could. I could feel his warmth emanating from his face as we embraced, making me feel happier, and stronger. All because he was by my side now.

"Fée... I'm sorry I let you get hurt like this," he mumbled into my ear. "I wish I could've been here earlier to protect you, but –"

"No..." I shook my head, accidentally smacking the side of his face with my muzzle. "Don't apologize. I'm just happy you're finally healthy again... was it Brin who helped you?"

I felt his cheek brush against mine as he nodded. "Yeah. She did some kind of... glowing, warm thing to me. The next thing I knew, my leg was healed and all my injuries just vanished."

"How is... how is she right now?"

"She's sleeping behind a tree over there. I think she might've tired herself out helping me though."

"That's..." I felt concerned over Brin's well – being. If Blue was healed by her... that means she used the Panacea, didn't she? I tried to crane my aching head over Blue's shoulder, to try and see if Brin was alright.

"Don't worry, she's fine." I heard Blue say as he pushed my head back down, "I saw her fall asleep before I left." He let out a quiet chuckle and shook his head, "I even heard her snore a little. There's nothing to worry about."

"I... I see..." I let out a relieved sigh, "That's good..."

I tried to stand up, but another spasm of pain shot through my legs when I tried to put my weight on them. A quiet gasp escaped my lips as I collapsed back onto the dirt. My body was aching all over the place, it was hard to even stay conscious with all this pain stabbing at my mind...

"Fée!" I felt Blue's arms wrap around me. His voice was quiet, and worried, "There's cuts all over your body...!"

"Oh these?" I struggled to put a smile on my face when I saw his expression, "This is.. just a few bumps and scrapes... there's nothing you need to be worried about, Blue."

"Heh..." Blue tightened his embrace, and pulled me off the ground. He hugged me tight, pulling me into his strong, warm chest. I felt his breath brush against my ear as he whispered to me, "Don't say that. That's something only an idiot like me can say, Fée."

"Hee, hee..." I leaned my face into his shoulder, "...at least you're aware of it... you stubborn idiot."

Then, within his warm embrace, I felt my consciousness begin to drift away...

"You can take a rest now, Fée. I'll clean up the mess here."

"...Heh... I'm counting on you..."

With his confident smile being the last thing I saw, I let myself fall asleep.

* * *

Zubat could not believe what was happening. Not only had he been humiliated by that coward of an Eevee, he was forced to watch his trump card be rendered worthless by that blasted Riolu. How could any Pokémon still be walking after being at ground zero of an explosion? Not only that, his entire body was unscathed!

His wing hovered in front of his cheek, rubbing it gingerly as he felt the lingering pain from that last punch. Zubat was amazed that he was still conscious after taking all those blows earlier. The damage he had taken was accumulating inside of him though, as he could feel exhaustion beginning to catch up to him.

"K – Koffing!" Zubat gasped as he pulled himself off the ground. His partner was also blasted away by that Riolu. Zubat could sense that gas bag's stench emanating from somewhere around him. "Wake up, you numbskull!"

"Woah..." A dull groan returned as a reply. Koffing was lying against the foot of a tree with his eyes staring up into the sky in a daze. A lethargic moan emitted from his mouth as the purple gas ball slowly back upright.

"Koffing... this is too much...!" Zubat zipped over to Koffing's side and slapped him on the cheek, "We can't let these two brats show us up like that!"

"B – but Zubat..." Koffing gurgled back, feeling the stinging pain on his face, "we've already been beaten up really bad... I don't want to fight anymore!"

"Too bad!" Zubat seethed, "Do you think that excuse'll work on the boss? Oh, we got beaten up, so we ran away?"

"Errgh... well..."

The purple bat flapped himself back into the air, and turned toward Koffing. A frown appeared on Zubat's face as he made his way beside his gaseous partner.

"We still have a way to win..." He whispered, "you just have to explode again the next time that Riolu comes near. Sure, he survived one explosion, but there's no way he'd be able to withstand another!"

Koffing's eyes bulged out of his head as he gaped at Zubat, "I – I can't! Zubat, you don't understand how much it hurts to blow myself up like that!"

"Keh!" Zubat slapped Koffing's face with his wing and screeched, "I don't care about how you feel, numbskull! We have to save face in front of the boss, so even if you have to blow yourself up a million times, you better do it!"

"Z – Zubat... d – do you not care about me at all...?" It looked like Koffing was about to cry as he stared at his partner in utter disbelief.

"Hey, what are you two talking about?"

Zubat and Koffing both spun around, startled by the new voice in their midst. Standing right behind them was the Riolu in question. A beaming smile was on his face, and his arms were folded across his chest.

"Keeeh!" With a terrified screech, Zubat sped away into the air, leaving Koffing behind with the Riolu.

"Oh no you don't!" Blue's eyes narrowed as he followed Zubat's flight. Stretching out his arm, he grabbed onto the abandoned Koffing and snagged onto one of his nubs.

"Woah!" Koffing let out a startled cry as Blue pulled him out of the air. Blue spun around on the spot, balancing on the tips of his feet. Koffing opened his mouth and unleashed a torrent of toxic gas in a desperate attempt to make the Riolu let go, but the pair of them were spinning so fast, the gas couldn't even reach Blue's nose.

Chuckling, Blue snapped his eyes toward the sky and glanced at the Zubat flapping away in the air. Once he was sure of his aim, Blue opened his mouth and shouted, "Hey Zubat! You forgot your friend!"

Zubat turned around just in time to see a purple meteor soaring toward him.

"Woaaagh!"

"Kee- agh!"

_Thunk!_

It was a direct hit. Koffing crashed right into Zubat, knocking both of them out of the air and sending them diving toward the dirt. As the two of them descended from up high, Blue kicked off the dirt and chased after them.

Zubat was the first to recover. With a screech, he spread out his wings to stabilize his flight. As he stopped in the middle of air, he turned toward Blue with his mouth wide open. He held one of his wings high up in the air, preparing to send an air blade toward the jumping Riolu.

_Clonk!_

He never got to fire off that air blade. Blue reached him first and slammed his fist down on top of his head, forcing his mouth shut and making him lower his wing. Stunned and in severe pain, Zubat couldn't even spread his wings to right himself in the air. Not that Blue would even give him a chance to.

"Haah!" As the Riolu landed on the ground, he spun around and turned his back to Zubat. He used his shoulder to strike Zubat as he fell, hitting him hard with his body. The force from the blow stunned Zubat, and rebounded him back up into the air. Blue's red eyes gleamed with anticipation as he watched the purple bat flop around in front of him, screeching indecipherable obscenities.

"Muuurgh..."

Blue's eyes were drawn to his left. Koffing was lying just beside him, his eyes spinning in his head in an utter daze. Smirking, Blue reached down with his right paw and grabbed Koffing by the nubs once again. He threw Koffing up into the air and smirked as he took aim at the stunned Zubat.

"Thanks for the help again, Koffing." Blue shouted out loud at the gassy ball. Koffing groaned as he descended from the air. He opened his eyes, trying to figure out what was going on. The first thing he saw was a black leg flying toward him.

_Thunk!_

Koffing's face was bent inward as Blue's foot collided with his body. He felt his spherical body undulate into an oval as Blue buried his leg deeper into his mug. He wanted to scream in pain, but it was too late.

"Hah!" Blue swung his right leg as hard as he could, kicking Koffing toward the flopping Zubat. A purple streak flashed through the grove for a third time.

"Keh..?"

The gassy ball traveled through the air for only a moment before it hit its target. Zubat felt his jaw ache as his partner slammed right into his face, knocking both of them out of the air once more. Like a strange, winged meteor, the two of them struck the ground with a loud _crash!_

Zubat was pinned underneath his partner. The two of them were buried several inches inside the dirt like a particularly ugly plant. Screeching in pain and fear, Zubat tried to prize Koffing off of him, but the dazed gas ball was too heavy for his wings to move.

"G – get off, you numbskull!" He screamed in a panic, "You're gonna get us both in trouble!"

"Woaaagh..." Koffing's reply was unfocused and useless. After being thrown and kicked around like a ball for the past few minutes, Koffing was down and out for the count. Zubat released a furious screech as he realized that he was going to be stuck underneath his partner until he woke up.

"Koffing! You useless ball of gas! How dare you fall asleep now?!"

"Don't blame him, it's not his fault he's unconscious."

An icy chill ran through Zubat's body as he heard that voice. Blue was bent over at the side of the small crater that Zubat and Koffing were embedded in, smirking at the sight of the two immobile bullies.

"Y – you... you think that this is enough to stop us?" Zubat shouted at him, trying to put on his most threatening voice. "I – I'm Zubat! I'm a member of Team Skull! You... you two cowards are nothing compared to us! Keeeh!"

"Yeah?" Blue snickered as he reached down into the crater. He pulled Zubat's crumpled body out from underneath Koffing and smiled at him. "Well, you know what...?"

In an instant, Blue's smile disappeared. In its place was a furious scowl. The Riolu's red eyes narrowed into slits as he glared at the struggling Zubat in his paws. He bared his fangs at Zubat, and spoke in a deep, threatening voice.

"I'm Blue."

He flung Zubat into the air and drew back his right arm. Every single drop of strength inside of his body flowed into his right paw as he clenched it into a tight fist. He watched as Zubat fluttered down in front of him, right in range for his final blow.

"...and you hurt my partner, Fée!"

_Wham!_

It was like a cannon had just fired. A powerful shockwave erupted from Blue's fist as he slammed it right into Zubat's face. The force was so powerful, so widespread, it caused several leaves to be dislodged from the canopy above.

Zubat didn't even have time to screech in pain. As soon as he had opened his mouth, his body slammed into a tree, knocking out all the air in his lungs, as well as knocking him out entirely. As he slid down the tree trunk, the last thing Zubat saw before he lost consciousness was the terrifying, furious Riolu standing before him with his fist pointed right as him.

Then, everything faded to black.

* * *

Letting out a deep sigh, Blue wiped the sweat off his brow, and shook his head. He surveyed the battlefield, taking in all the destruction around him. Large leaves fluttered down from the canopy, coating the ground of the decimated grove with a thick layer of green. Wisps of smoke, both black and brown, continued to linger in the air as a noxious remnant of the battle.

As he turned, he spotted his friend lying in the dirt a few feet away. He ran toward Fée, his mind filled with worry and regret. Kneeling by her side, he brushed off any stray dirt or leaves that had landed on her body.

"Fée... I'm so sorry..."

Her body was covered in tiny cuts, staining her fur with little splatters of red. Something thick and black was caked around her eyes. Blue licked his paw, and tried to wipe off as much of it as he could. A sickening feeling rose up within him when he saw the cut in the middle of her forehead. To see his dear friend in this state... he couldn't forgive himself for not being by her side.

Shaking his head, he threw away his self – loathing thoughts. There were more important things to do right now than beat himself up. Her Explorer's Pack was lying but a few feet away, its contents exposed. He walked over to her pack and slung it around his neck, putting it next to his own.

He glanced down at Fée's pack. There were several different colored berries lying inside of it. An idea popped inside of his head, putting a grin on his face. Excited, he stuck his paw into her pack and pulled out a small, blue – colored berry. But, as he held the berry up to his eyes, he felt his smile slip off his muzzle as a realization hit him.

Unlike Fée, he wasn't aware of the effects of each berry. While she had helped him many, many times before in the past with them, Blue never had a chance to see how she use them. An icy fear raced through his mind as he imagined accidentally worsening Fée's wounds due to his ineptitude. He didn't want to give her a berry by accident that might harm more than help.

Panicking, he swung his head around, looking for anything that could help him. As he turned around, holding that berry in his paws, he spotted something odd lying off in the distance. At the foot of a tree was what looked like a bundle of old cloth.

"...maybe I can bundle Fée up in that cloth..." Blue mused to himself as he wandered over to it. As he neared it, a strange sense of familiarity nudged him in the back of his head. He narrowed his eyes, trying to make out what the heap of purple cloth was.

A jolt of shock ran down his spine when he recognized it, forcing his eyes wide and his mouth to drop. It was not just a bundle of cloth! It was Mismagius lying on the ground!

"H – hey! Are you alright?" Blue rushed over and knelt beside the cloaked Pokémon. He picked up her thin, wispy body and cradled her head carefully.

The old Pokémon was lying on the ground, asleep. A thin cut was present on her face, and her hat, but it looked like it wasn't anything too severe. Her crooked mouth was opening and closing as she breathed in her sleep.

"Mismagius... are you awake?" Blue whispered as he lightly shook her with his paws. "It's me, Blue."

"Mmh..." Blue felt his muzzle curl up in a relieved smile when he saw her eyes flicker. Mismagius made a murmuring noise and lifted herself off the ground. She glanced around her for a moment, her eyes unfocused, before turning back to the Riolu below her.

"...Blue?"

"Oh thank goodness," Blue reached up and hugged the hem of Mismagius' cloak in relief.

"What... what happened?" Mismagius murmured, still feeling a little out of it. Her cloak trailed up to her face, and felt the thin cut that Zubat had given her. "I... I must've been knocked out by that cretin..."

As soon as she said that word, her eyes shot wide. Her recollection of the events that had happened but moments prior to her slumber came rushing back into her mind. She turned toward Blue in a panic, grabbing onto his paws with her cloak.

"Those cretins!" She shouted at a surprised – looking Blue, "What happened to them? Where are they? Where's Fée? Where's Brin?!"

"H – hold on!" Blue stammered at the frenzied mother. He unhooked his paws from her cloak and took a step back. Turning around, he pointed a finger at the two unconscious bullies lying off in the distance.

"They... they're defeated?" Mismagius muttered, sounding a little surprised. She turned her head toward Blue, her mouth slowly curling up into a smile. "By you?"

Blue shook his head, "No, not just me." He turned his finger over to the sleeping Fée and said, "Fée was the one who fought them off, all by herself. I just finished it for her."

"Fée!" Mismagius shouted in horror as she saw the Eevee lying in the dirt. The cloaked Pokémon rushed over with alarming speed. Blue had to cover his eyes as Mismagius conjured up a gale of wind behind her, rustling up stray dirt and leaves in her wake.

Mismagius lowered herself down to Fée's side, and curled her cloak around her limp form. Picking her up, Mismagius pressed the side of her head onto Fée's chest, listening to her heart beat. A sigh of relief exited the ghost's mouth when she was sure that Fée was alright.

"How did this happen?" Mismagius murmured as she gently put Fée back on the ground. She turned around, staring at Blue with an imploring look in her eyes. "Her wounds aren't too severe, but she needs treatment as soon as possible."

"Um..." Blue held out the blue – colored berry in his paw to Mismagius. "I found this in her bag, will this help?

"An Oran Berry..." said Mismagius as she took the berry out of the Riolu's paw. She held it up into the air, examining it for any bruises or cuts. A smile came onto Mismagius' face as she turned back to Blue. She nodded and said, "Yes, this will help. Thank goodness you were able to procure one so fast, Blue."

"It's not like that," Blue said with a shake of his head, "I just found it in her bag, that's all."

"At the very least, you managed to find one in her bag such short time." Mismagius chuckled as she held the Oran Berry over Fée's body.

Mismagius took the Oran Berry and, with a flick of her cloak, sliced it into two halves. Blue – colored juice began to spill out of the sliced berry, splattering onto the soil. Careful as to not waste anymore of the juice, Mismagius moved the two halves of the berry over Fée's body. She hovered the berry slices over her wounds, allowing the medicinal juice to drip on to her cuts. Mismagius began to spread the Oran juice all over Fée's fur, staining it blue. The sleeping Eevee trembled, and shivereded as the cool liquid touched her skin.

"Will she be alright?" Blue's face was filled with concern and worry as he watched Mismagius clean his partner's wounds. He turned toward Mismagius, his eyes imploring, "She'll be fine, right? Right?"

"Her cuts are shallow. There's nothing to be worried about, my dear," Mismagius replied with a hint of amusement in her voice, "give it a little time, and you wont even be able to tell that she had been injured."

"I see..." Blue held his paw over his chest and sighed. He smiled and covered his face with his paw, "I'm so glad..."

A chuckle came from Mismagius as she reached up with her juice – stained cloak. She tapped him on the tip of his snout, leaving a dollop of blue on his nose. "Fée's quite lucky to have such a caring partner like you, Blue." Mismagius said as she smiled at Blue as he tried to wipe the sticky goo off his face, "It makes me a little jealous, to be honest with you."

"Jealous?" Blue echoed, looking confused.

Mismagius chuckled and nodded, "You're the type of friend that I've always wanted Brin to make outside of the forest. Someone strong, someone brave enough to stay by her side, even in times of crisis." Mismagius looked down at Fée, "Fée really is fortunate to have you by her side..."

"Oh! That's right!" Blue said as he clamped his paw over his fist, "Brin! I need to check on her!"

"Mm?" Mismagius' head snapped toward Blue, her eyes wide, "Did something happen to her?"

"I'll bring her over here, Mismagius." Blue said as he started to run in place, "Just wait a moment, alright?"

"Very well," Mismagius replied, still looking a little confused, "But do hurry back, alright?"

"Will do!" shouted Blue as he sped off toward the other side of the grove.

* * *

"Be careful with that tray! You might burn yourself!"

"Mm... no need to worry, my dear. I'm always careful."

"Quit showing off and put it down already then! You're scaring Brin."

"Mm... I thought she'd be impressed, if anything. Very well then."

Brin watched with a big smile on her face as the baker spun the heavy tray around a few times in the air, eliciting a sigh of frustration from the cloaked Pokémon hovering beside him. A giggle came from somewhere above her, drawing Brin's attention upward.

She was a small Pokémon, small enough that she could lie down on someone's lap and still have room to spare. Brin nuzzled against that someone's warm and fuzzy belly, trying to call attention to herself. Brin saw a bright smile flash above her, followed by a warm hand coming down and scratching her right ear. Brin cooed as she leaned her head against the hand, letting it soothe an itch that she didn't even know she had.

"There, there," a soft, comforting voice floated into her ears, making her close her eyes in contentment. "are you tired, my dear Brin?"

Brin opened her mouth to reply, but a loud yawn came out instead. She heard another giggle from above, making her feel a little embarrassed.

"It's alright if you want to sleep for a bit," she heard the voice say as she curled herself into a small ball, holding onto her bushy tail with her front paws. "I'll wake you up when Duskull is done with your treat."

"Mm... that'll be but a moment," Duskull replied as he spun the tray around in the air. "I wouldn't want little Brin to burn her tongue on these biscuits. Let me cool them off first."

"Duskull, you'll end up burning yourself if you keep spinning it like that," Mismagius grumbled, covering her face with her cloak in annoyance, "put it down and let it cool normally already."

"Mm..."

"Hee, hee..."

Brin stood at the side, watching the peaceful scene play out in front of her. There was Duskull, hovering a few inches in the air and balancing a tray of steaming biscuits on his cloak. Mismagius stood by his side, trying to hide her amusement behind her cloak as she watched Duskull spin the tray round and round.

Then, she turned her head around and saw herself. The little yellow – furred Pokémon, snoozing away without a care in the world. As she looked up from her younger self, Brin felt a painful thump in her chest.

"Delphox, tell Duskull to stop being a fool, would you?"

"Hee..." Delphox tittered as she brushed Brin's soft fur with her hand, "Duskull, you heard her. You'll make her turn gray with worry if you keep playing with her feelings like that."

"Mm... I suppose," Duskull let out a low chuckle and halted the spinning tray. "I cannot imagine Mismagius wearing a gray cloak, could you?"

"With the way she acts?" Delphox let out an amused laugh, "I suppose I could!"

Mismagius sighed and shook her head. She pointed her cloak at the Pokémon sleeping on Delphox's lap and said, "I hope, for her sake, that Brin doesn't grow up influenced by your frivolousness, Duskull."

"Mm..." Duskull mumbled something inaudible as he placed the tray on the counter. Delphox smiled and tickled Brin's belly, making the sleeping Pokémon coo and wriggle with happiness.

"I wouldn't mind if she grew up to be a little playful," Delphox murmured, drooping her head down, "I wouldn't want her affected by the city's doldrums."

"Delphox..." Mismagius said, looking a little concerned. The robed Pokémon quickly looked up and put a smile on her face.

"Don't worry Delphox," Duskull said, patting Mismagius on the back, "I'm sure Brin will grow up into a fine, young lady. Just like you, mm..."

"You flatter me, Duskull," Delphox smirked at her skull – faced friend. She looked down a the sleeping Brin, and placed her hand atop her head, "But... I do hope what you said comes true."

She fluffed the soft fur on Brin's head and smiled down at her, "The only thing I want for my dear Brin... is for her to live a happy life."

Brin felt tears flow down the sides of her face as she watched her mother pat her younger self's head. Clutching her cheeks, Brin's knees failed her, forcing her down to the wooden floor. She reached out her hand at Delphox, wanting to feel her mother's warmth once more. But, as her finger touched Delphox's fur, everything disappeared.

The inside of the bakery began to swirl around, obscuring the peaceful morning with a whirlpool of black. Brin cried out in shock as everything around her became a nightmare. Delphox, Duskull, Mismagius, and even her past self vanished into the darkness. She pulled herself off the ground and an after her mother's image. She tried to reach forward with her hands, to catch that last lingering flame of light.

But it was all gone. Right as her finger was about to reach the light, it was extinguished by the smothering darkness. Brin fell to her knees once more, surrounded by black, and all alone. No matter how hard she wished for it, no matter how much she desired it... she would never be able to have her mother by her side again.

Brin tried to wipe off the tears on her cheeks, but they wouldn't stop. Her face was becoming drenched as she continued to sob by herself.

"...in..."

Her ears perked up as a sudden sound rang out in the void. Through blurry eyes, Brin glanced around her for the source of the voice. All she could see though, was complete and utter blackness.

"...rin...!"

The voice was louder this time. In response to the voice, Brin pulled herself off the ground and tried to move toward it. She didn't know where she was going, or where she was headed to, but she had no better choice right now. Still crying, Brin sniffled as she trudged through the darkness.

"...re you...ake?"

It was a familiar voice, really familiar. Brin looked up at the 'sky' of the void, hoping to see something there.

"...It's me...lue...!"

All of a sudden, a large crack appeared in the 'sky,' shattering it as if it was a pane of glass. Light shone through the fissures, blinding Brin with its brilliance. She held her hand over her eyes, and tried to make out what was behind the black.

"Hey!"

The void broke into a thousand – no, a million pieces. Light flowed into the world like a gleaming curtain, revealing everything around Brin. As she adjusted to the sudden brightness, Brin saw a familiar silhouette standing in front of her. She tried to shout at the person, to get his attention. But, as always, no words left her mouth.

So, instead of speaking, Brin decided to run toward it.

* * *

Brin mumbled in a quiet voice as she shook her head. Something was making her body jitter up and down, and her face was pressed against something warm and fuzzy. Yawning, Brin reached up with her hand to rub her tired eyes. As she did so, she felt her fingers bump against something hard.

"Ow."

Her eyes flew wide open. She looked to her right, and saw that her knuckles was bumping against something blue and fuzzy. All of a sudden, the jittering feeling stopped, making Brin look back down.

"Hey, looks like you've finally woke up."

Blue craned his head around to look at the Pokémon that he was carrying on his back. The side of his head was smarting from her sudden knock, but he ignored it and put a grin on his face. Brin's eyes gleamed with bewilderment as her slumbering mind tried to piece together what was happening. Her white arms were thrown around Blue's shoulders, while his arms were wrapped around her legs.

Then, everything seemed to click. A rising heat erupted inside of her cheeks, turning her white fur a pleasant shade of red. Panicking, her mouth flapped open and closed as embarrassment overtook her sense of reason.

"Whoa! Don't struggle!" Blue shouted as he tried to maintain his balance with the wriggling girl on his back. Although he was strong, he was still carrying a Pokémon that was almost twice his size. It wasn't something that he could just do without focusing.

Muted cries of embarrassment came from Brin's mouth as she continued to rock back and forth, her arms clutching Blue's face and covering his eyes. Blue let out a shout of surprise as his vision was obscured, making him accidentally let go of her legs.

_Thump! __Thud!_

They both went tumbling onto the dirt, with Brin holding tight onto Blue's face. Blue groaned as he pulled himself off the ground. He rubbed the back of his aching head as he turned around. Brin, her face still a brilliant shade of red, was lying in the dirt with her hands covering her eyes.

"Ugh... that's the second time today..." Blue grumbled as he knelt in front of her. He prodded her forehead and gave her a mock frown. "What was that for?"

Brin peered out from in between her fingers and spotted Blue's expression. With a quiet yelp, she hid herself back behind her white hands and trembled. Blue sighed and shook his head. He took his paw and placed it atop her head, rubbing it in a comforting way.

"Hey, I'm not really mad. So don't be scared, alright?"

When she felt his warm paw on her head, a sudden rush of emotion flooded out of her heart. Brin felt the warm tears cascade out of her eyes as she pulled herself off the ground. Her hands were drenched, and her eyes were blurry. She didn't want to cry, but she couldn't help it. Everything came flooding back to her, making her want to break down on the spot and sob like a child.

"B – Brin? Why are you crying?" Blue was startled by the tears rolling down her cheeks. He hurriedly pulled his paw off her head and stood up, "D – did you get hurt?"

Blue was in a panic when he saw Brin sobbing in front of him. His mind was abuzz with confusion. He didn't know why she just started crying all of a sudden, and he couldn't figure out what to do to cheer her back up.

He turned around and saw Mismagius' back in the distance, still caring for Fée. He quickly jabbed a finger toward the cloaked Pokémon, and said to Brin, "I'm gonna go get your mother, alright? Just wait here!"

"No..."

Blue froze in the middle of his run. He turned around and saw Brin holding out her hand at him, her mouth open and her eyes glistening.

"D – did you just speak?" Blue whispered, a little stunned. After all, he hadn't heard her say a single word before since they met.

Brin gave him a slow nod. Before he could say another word, she took a step forward and grabbed onto his arm. Her hands moved down to his paw, and pulled it up. She closed her eyes and put his paw atop her head.

"E – eh?" Blue couldn't figure out what the significance behind this action was. All he could think of doing was rubbing her head, like he would with Fée. "Is this what you want?"

Another nod came from Brin, making Blue sigh and droop his shoulders down in relief. He still didn't know why she started struggling and crying all of a sudden, but if something like this could cheer her up, then he'll rub her head until she felt better.

Brin, on the other hand, was still embroiled in embarrassment. When Blue touched her head earlier, all she could think of was reliving that same feeling that her mother gave her when she was a child. Even though she was being selfish and causing him discomfort, she couldn't help but beg her friend to satisfy her desire.

She looked at Blue's face. He still looked rather confused and unsure of himself as he continued to rub her head. The sight of his silly face... it made her want to smile and laugh. Just like how she used to when she was still with her family. The heat inside of her face began to fade as she enjoyed the gentle movements of Blue's paw.

A twinge of warmth sparked atop her head, making her tail flick upward. She sensed a familiar scrap of her aura inside of him, flitting about inside of his body like a little spark of flame. Then, as her mouth curled into a smile, she remembered how she used her power to save his life. Even now, her body was exhausted and aching all over, but she didn't care.

"Feeling better now?"

Brin nodded and looked at Blue. As she stared into his red eyes, she felt her smile grow wider. Reaching up with her hands, she took a hold of his paw and pulled it down to her chest. She held it tight against her, closing her eyes, and feeling that little flame – like aura of hers dancing inside of it. Brin continued holding onto him for a while, enjoying his company and his warmth in silence.

"My... you seem quite attached to him now, hm?"

Brin's eyes flew open at the sound of her mother's voice. She looked up and saw Mismagius hovering overhead, looking down at the pair of them with an amused twinkle in her eye. Blushing furiously, Brin let go of Blue's paw and shook her head at her mother.

"It's quite alright," Mismagius laughed as she circled around the red – faced Braixen. She wrapped her cloak around Brin and held her tight, "I'm so relieved you're okay, my dear Brin..."

Brin nodded, and hugged Mismagius back.

"Mismagius, how's Fée?"

Mismagius looked over Brin's shoulder at the concerned Riolu. With a small smile, Mismagius nodded and pointed at the sleeping Eevee behind him.

"She'll be fine... give her some rest, and she'll be back on her feet."

"Oh, thank goodness..." Blue clutched his chest and sighed. He looked up and smiled at Mismagius, "Thank you so much, Mismagius..."

"No, I should be thanking you," Mismagius replied as she let go of Brin.

"What for?" Blue glanced over at Brin for an answer, but she looked just as confused as he was.

"For many things, my dear." Mismagius glanced down at Brin, who was still gazing at Blue with her hands across her chest. Smiling, the cloaked Pokémon spoke with an enigmatic air, "But for now, please accept my gratitude for taking care of those two cretins."

"You're welcome," despite still looking a little confused, Blue bowed toward Mismagius and Brin. Afterward, he spun around and ran toward his unconscious partner, leaving the mother – daughter pair alone. Brin reached out with her hand, grasping at Blue's retreating form for a moment before dropping her arm.

"Brin," Mismagius spoke, making the Braixen look up at her. The cloaked Pokémon pointed at Blue and Fée in the distance and chuckled. "Tell me, are you still afraid of what's beyond the forest?"

Brin stared at Blue kneeling beside Fée, worrying over her wounds and injuries. After a moment, Brin turned around and shook her head, smiling.

"Would you like to tell me why?" Mismagius said, smiling back at Brin. Giggling, Brin shook her head again. Two patches of pink appeared on her cheeks as she stole another glance at her new friends behind her.

"I see..." Mismagius curled her cloak beneath Brin's chin and chuckled, "I suppose even you have a few secrets you wish to keep from your mother, hm, hm..."

Feeling put on the spot, Brin covered her reddening face with her hands and looked away. A chill breeze blew through the grove, signifying the arrival of night. Brin shivered a bit as she felt the cold air brush through her fur.

"Heeey!" Both of them turned toward the shout. Blue was running toward them from the other side of the grove, waving at them. He had hoisted Fée onto his back, and was carrying her like he did with Brin earlier.

Blue stopped in front of them, panting a little from the exertion. He looked up, grinning, and said to Mismagius, "Fée looks like she's going to be okay. Thank you so much, Mismagius!" He tried to reach forward and grab Mismagius' cloak, but quickly decided against it as Fée nearly slipped off his back.

"Now, now," Mismagius chuckled as she wrapped her cloak around Brin, keeping her warm. She turned around, and began to drift away with Brin in tow. "Come, we can speak more comfortably once we've returned to the house. It's much too cold out here to talk about the future."

"You're telling me!" Blue said as he shuddered from the cold breeze, "It was so warm earlier. I can't believe it's gotten so cold here!"

"Hm, hm, hm... that's what happens in this forest during the night," Mismagius covered up her face with her cloak and left the grove, with Blue following close behind. "It would nice to finally have a night without chills, don't you think?"

Brin tilted her head to the side, confused. What was her mother talking about?

"What do we do about those two?" Blue asked, turning around to look at the unconscious Zubat and Koffing lying in the grove behind them. "Are we just going to leave them there?"

Mismagius let out another chuckle. "Don't worry about it, my dear. I'm sure the forest will take care of those two cretins." She flicked her head up into the air and smiled, "Isn't that right, Oro?"

The canopy of leaves rustled in response.


	25. Bonus: Be her friend, that's all I wish

**•   
Bonus Chapter  
**

**"Be her friend, that is all I wish for"**

* * *

The wooden door emitted a loud creak as Blue nudged it open with his foot. As he walked into Mismagius and Brin's abode, a cold gust of wind followed him inside, sending a shiver down his spine. He shook his head and took a deep breath, enduring the chill as he strode into the house. Once he was completely inside, he stretched out his right leg and slammed the door closed.

He made sure not to step on any of the scattered books and other assorted objects littering all over the floor of the house as he made his way over to the long – extinguished fireplace. He stared at the blackened logs lying at the base of the hearth with his mouth curled into a frown. Without the flame crackling in the fireplace, the inside of the home was just as cold as the forest outside.

"Allow me, my dear."

Blue turned around at the sound of Mismagius' voice behind him. The cloaked Pokémon hovered past the burdened Riolu and stopped in front of the cold hearth. With a wide sweep of her cloak, Mismagius conjured up five, blue – colored fireballs around her. The messy house was illuminated by a pale, azure light as Mismagius manipulated the five burning orbs to move toward the fireplace.

"Woah..." Blue watched in awe as the slow fireballs moved one – by – one across his vision. His eyes glittered with excitement as they tracked their movement around the hearth. Mismagius let out an amused chuckle at Blue's enthusiasm as she made the fireballs dance, circling around the inert logs. Flickers of blue flame scattered out of the hearth as they fused into one, large fireball. Then, Mismagius dropped it.

_Fwoosh!_

The instant the fireball touched the logs, a great orange flame erupted inside of the fireplace, enveloping the inside of the house with a glorious warm glow. Blue let out a content sigh as he felt his chilled body begin to heat back up thanks to the fire.

"Thanks, Mismagius," he said, smiling up at the cloaked Pokémon above him. Mismagius turned toward him and returned his smile.

"There's no reason to thank me," she fluffed the fur on Blue's head as she swooped over to her favorite rocking chair. Mismagius turned around and draped her ethereal body over it. Her gaze traveled over to the Riolu. An amused chuckle escaped her mouth as she watched the boy just stand in front of the fire, still carrying his heavy burden without a single hint of exhaustion.

"My, are you not tired at all, Blue?"

Blue turned his head toward Mismagius, who was pointing at him with the hem of her cloak. He followed the direction where her cloak was pointing, and found himself staring at his own arms. The edges of his lips curled up into a smile as he shook his head.

"No, I'm fine." He said, shaking his head.

Carried on his back, and cradled in his arms, are the two sleeping girls: Fée and Brin. The young Eevee was snoring away in his arms, with her head lying against his chest as if it were a pillow. The Braixen, on the other hand, was hugging onto his back. Her delicate white arms were circled around his neck, while her head laid against his shoulder.

"Are you sure?" Mismagius said, covering her face as she stared at the curious sight in front of her, "You had to carry them all the way from the grove. At the very least, I'm sure your muscles must be a bit sore from all that walking."

"You know, I thought I would be too." Blue said as he knelt on the ground. "But I feel like I'm filled with energy. It's strange."

He placed his paw atop one of the poufs on the floor, gauging the temperature. Once he was satisfied with its warmth, he placed his sleeping partner on top of it. Then, he leaned back and slid the sleeping Brin off his back. He held onto the Braixen's shoulders and gently moved her over to Fée's side, letting the two girls lean against each other as they slept.

Once he was sure the two of them were comfortable, Blue stood up and took a few steps back. He smiled as Mismagius hovered past him, levitating a thick blanket in front of her. She swooped down in front of the girls and draped the blanket over them, tucking the two of them in together.

Mismagius turned around and took ahold of Blue's paw with her cloak. She lead him over to one of the poufs and set him down. Another blanket appeared in the air and swirled itself around the Riolu. Blue caught it with his paws and threw it over his body. He snuggled into the warm cloth, feeling content and happy.

"Full of energy, you say?" Mismagius chuckled as Blue let out a loud yawn. He rubbed his eyes as he gave her a sheepish smile.

"Well, maybe not entirely full," Blue said, smiling, "but full enough to be able to stay up for just a bit longer."

"If that's the case," Mismagius chuckled as she hovered over to the side of the fireplace, where the small, cast – iron pot hung on a hook. She picked it up and brought it over to the fireplace. "how about I heat you up some soup while you provide this old Pokémon some company?"

"I'd love to," Blue replied, smiling up at the specter. "I wouldn't mind the soup either, Mismagius."

"Hm, hm," chuckling, Mismagius lowered a ladle into the pot and stirred it as she smiled at the swaddled up Riolu, "I appreciate it, my dear."

Blue stared at the pot as it began to bubble from the fire. Through the blanket, he scratched his nose and said, "Mismagius, do you mind if I ask you something weird?"

"Something weird? Whatever could it be, I wonder?"

"Erm, well..." Blue felt his gaze wander away from the pot and over to the snoozing Braixen. "It's about Brin."

"My daughter?" Mismagius turned around and looked at Blue. A smile appeared on her face as she watched him nod slowly.

"Does Brin, uh, does she..."

"No, she doesn't have anyone in particular she likes yet, my dear." Mismagius winked at Blue, "Though, if you're interested in her... I'm sure she wouldn't mind indulging you."

"I see..." Blue held his chin with his paw as he mulled over Mismagius' answer. Then, something popped into Blue's mind, making his eyes fly wide open and his cheeks flush red. "N – no, that wasn't what I meant to ask!" He stammered, shaking his head and gaping at the chuckling specter.

"It wasn't? What a shame." Mismagius sighed in disappointment as she shook her head.

Flustered, Blue wrapped his blanket tighter around himself as he averted his eyes from Brin. In an almost dismissive fashion, Mismagius flicked her cloak at Blue and said in a lofty tone, "Well then, what is it that you wanted to ask about then?"

"I just wanted to know if Brin..." Blue paused and shook the blush from his face before continuing, "I mean, your daughter had any relation with the Panacea."

"The Panacea..." Mismagius' mouth curled up into a sly smile, "now why would you think my daughter has a connection with it?"

Blue looked down. His right foot was poking out from underneath his blanket. Lifting it up, he wiggled his toes as he gazed at his now – uninjured leg.

"When that explosion hit me, I thought I was done for. I couldn't move a thing. My head, my arms, and my legs were all paralyzed from the impact." He leaned his head back and sighed at the ceiling. "I couldn't move. I couldn't stand, and I couldn't even speak. Even when Brin was crying in front of me, I couldn't even comfort her."

"But then, something strange happened." Blue held out his paw in front of his face and clenched it, "Before I fainted, I saw Brin do something weird." His head turned toward the sleeping Braixen, "She had her arms held out, and her entire body was cloaked in some sort of bright, golden light."

"A golden light, you say?"

Blue nodded, "The next thing I knew, I was back awake. My body was completely healed. Not a single cut, bruise or burn on my fur at all." He shook his head, "At first, I couldn't believe it. Not only was I healed, I felt better than ever. It was like some kind of fire was burning inside of me, bringing strength into my body."

"Poetic, Blue," Mismagius chuckled as she hovered back to the fireplace. She lifted the lid off the pot and made a ladle appear beside her in a puff of purple smoke, along with a bowl and a spoon. She dipped the ladle inside of the pot and swirled it around, "perhaps you should write a book."

"Heh," Blue grinned as he scratched his nose, "I'd have to learn how to read and write first."

"You seem like a smart boy. I'm sure you'll pick up the basics fast." Mismagius pointed at the Fée with her ladle, "Especially with a partner as bright as Fée."

Blue smiled as he nodded in agreement, "Yeah, Fée's leagues smarter than I am." He let out a chuckle and wrapped his blanket tighter around himself, "The only things I know how to do are how to punch and how to kick. Everything else is a complete blank."

"Don't be so harsh on yourself, my dear," Mismagius scolded. She sent Blue a stern glare as she scooped up a bowlful of steaming soup. "if it wasn't for your combat prowess, then how would you have driven away those two cretins?"

"It wasn't just because of my prowess," Blue said as he accepted the warm bowl and spoon from Mismagius. "if Brin hadn't helped me then, I don't know what I would've done." He looked up from his soup and gave Mismagius a wry smile, "Well – knowing me – I probably would've forced myself to stand and fight anyway. I didn't want those two to hurt Brin."

"Is that so?" Mismagius chuckled while Blue busied himself with his bowl. She tapped the side of the pot with her ladle and commented, "Then my daughter made the correct choice in placing her trust in you, Blue."

"Mm?" A curious look appeared on Blue's face as he glanced up at Mismagius, his cheeks filled with soup. Mismagius waved her cloak at him, gesturing for him to swallow first before speaking.

Taking Mismagius' advice, Blue gulped down what was in his mouth. A pleasurable shiver went through his body as the hot, sweet – flavored broth began to warm him up from inside. The Riolu took a deep breath and patted his belly. With a sweep of her cloak, Mismagius made her ladle vanish in a puff of purple. She hovered over to where the two snoozing girls were and lowered herself behind Brin.

"Blue," Mismagius spoke in a soft voice as she brushed the fur on Brin's head. She turned toward Blue and smiled at him, "I'm sure you're already quite aware by now of the true identity of the Panacea."

"I had my suspicions," Blue muttered, putting his bowl down on the floor, "but I'm still not really sure about it."

"Then, why don't you give it your best guess?" Mismagius chuckled and wrapped her cloak around the sleeping Braixen, "Though... I will warn you now that there will be a penalty if you guess wrong, my dear."

"A penalty?"

Mismagius nodded, smirking, "If you get it wrong... you'll have to do a small favor for me. Will you accept that?"

Blue folded his arms underneath the blanket and tilted his head to the side. He mulled over her words for a moment.

"Alright," his lips curled up into a smile as he threw his blanket off of him. The Riolu stood up and tapped his chest with his fist, "I'll agree to that."

"My, you're so bold..." Mismagius smiled back at Blue. Letting go of her daughter, the specter levitated back into the air and said, "let's hear it then."

Blue scratched his cheek and closed his eyes. In his mind, he began to piece together the puzzle regarding the identity of the Panacea. He recalled the conversation Fée and Mismagius had earlier today, as well as the stunned look on Brin's face when she heard them talking about the Panacea back at the clearing. His paw went to his chest, feeling the warm flame flickering inside. There was no doubt in his mind that this flame was a gift to him from Brin. But... what is it? How did he get it? That was the answer he was seeking.

The image of Brin standing before him, arms outstretched and covered in a radiant glow resurfaced inside his memory. Right before he lost his grip on his consciousness, that was the last thing he saw. So then, what was that light? A beautiful glow... a wondrous warmth...

"Could it be..." Blue's eyes opened slowly as he turned his head toward his side. His eyes fell upon the sleeping Braixen in front of him as he uttered his answer, "could it be that Brin... could she be the Panacea?"

"Hm... what a shame..."

Blue's gaze snapped toward Mismagius, who was shaking her head with a dejected look on her face. She held her cloak out and rubbed the top of Brin's head as she smiled at the confused – looking Riolu.

"A shame?" Blue uttered, "Did I get it wrong?"

Mismagius shook her head, still smiling, "It's a shame because you're right, my dear." She let out an amused giggle as Blue's look of confusion intensified. "It's a shame because now, I cannot ask you to take my daughter as your bride, my dear."

"Eh?!" Blue's eyes shot wide as he took a stunned step backward. He glanced down at his paws, then at Brin, before finally resting his astonished gaze on the chuckling specter above them. "W – what do you mean by bride?"

"My, there's no need to act so surprised," Mismagius floated past the heads of the girls and rested herself beside the shocked Riolu. She raised her cloak and patted him on the shoulder, giggling, "I was only partially joking, my dear."

Before Blue could say another word, Mismagius muffled his mouth with her cloak. "All jokes aside," she said as her previous jovial expression became hard, and serious, "do you now understand why we live in such a far – flung place? Alone and separated from society?"

"Mmph," Blue made a muted noise and tilted his head to the side.

"Brin's power is incredible. Yet, with such a great power, it comes with a drawback." Mismagius let go of Blue's mouth and sighed, "You've experienced it firsthand, you should know just how miraculous this power is."

"It's miraculous alright," Blue muttered, rubbing his right leg with his arm, "with my leg like this, I can hardly believe it was badly poisoned just a few days ago. It was like it never happened."

"I don't claim to know everything about Brin's Panacea – no, far from that – in truth, I don't know anything about it. That power is something that only Brin can understand, and it is up to her if she wishes to divulge her knowledge about it. All I can tell you about it is what I've seen."

The Riolu rubbed his chin as he glanced over to Brin, "You said that there was a drawback." He turned back to Mismagius, "What did you mean by that?"

A sigh came from the specter as she floated over to her rocking chair. She draped herself atop the rickety, wooden thing and said, "Have you wondered why my dear daughter fell asleep while we were walking home?"

"No, I haven't," Blue said, shaking his head, "I just assumed she was tired after what happened today."

"Would you mind looking at her right leg for me?" Mismagius muttered, glancing at the sleeping girls across from her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Blue's flustered expression and smiled.

"Calm down, my dear. Just pull up the blanket a bit. There's no need for you to touch her." She chuckled and held her cloak over her mouth. "Though, I wouldn't mind if you wanted to take a little pe–"

"Aaagh!" Blue interrupted Mismagius' comment by shouting loudly. Both Fée and Brin grumbled in their sleep, evidently annoyed by the noise. Giggling, Mismagius rocked her chair back and forth, amused by Blue's nervousness.

Grumbling, Blue trudged over to the girls and knelt before Brin. He ignored the giggles coming from the rocking chair behind him and reached out for the blanket. Both girls squirmed as Blue lifted it up a tad, letting a little warmth escape their huddle. Taking great pains not to see more than necessary, Blue looked down at Brin's black – furred legs.

He gasped.

"W – why?" Blue dropped the blanket and scrambled away as fast as he could. He turned toward Mismagius, his face pale and his eyes wide. "How?"

"Do you understand now?" Mismagius said in a cool, quiet voice, "The drawback of Brin's power?"

Blue nodded silently at Mismagius. A sick feeling began to well up in his gut as he glanced down at his own legs. He felt his face curl into a scowl, and his eyes narrowed in self – loathing.

"My, Fée was right." Mismagius covered her face as she chuckled at the anger brewing inside of the Riolu, "You really are quite a stubborn boy."

"What do you mean?" Blue said, his voice coming out harsher than he intended.

"Just before we left the house, Fée mentioned to me that you would most likely refuse to be cured by Brin if you knew the side effects so her power." She let out another chuckle and added, "Even if it meant living with one leg for the rest of your life."

"W – well... I might've," taken aback by her words, Blue glanced down at his paws with a nervous expression on his face, "how I can I let Brin take on that sort of pain for me? That's..." His shook his head and steeled his expression. He looked up at Mismagius, frowning, "No, I can't. I won't let someone else get hurt for my sake."

Blue held out his arms in front of him and said in a loud voice, "Mismagius, is there anyway to reverse the treatment? I can't let Brin suffer my pain for me!"

"As far as I know, there isn't a way to take back what she has given." Mismagius murmured, shaking her head. "However... "

Mismagius lifted herself off her rocking chair and floated over in front of Blue. She reached out with her cloak and held it beside his cheek. Blue's eyes traveled over to his right, wondering what she was about do to.

_Pap__!_

"Geh!" Blue sprung back, his face throbbing with a stinging pain. He clutched his reddening cheek with his paws and stared at Mismagius, stupefied.

"Don't be a fool, Blue." The specter raised up her cloak again, making Blue stare at it with a wary eye. However, instead of another slap, she began to rub his face gently.

"What do you mean?" Blue stared at Mismagius, utterly bewildered by what she meant.

Mismagius smiled as she grabbed Blue's cheeks, squeezing both sides of his face together. "Understand that it was my daughter's decision to help you, Blue." She said as she made his head turn toward Brin, "If she was the one who gave you the gift of healing, then you should accept it."

"But that doesn't mean anything!" Blue grumbled, trying to turn his head back to Mismagius, "Now she's the one with the scars on her leg! How can I accept that?"

"Hm, hm..." Mismagius chuckled as she let go of Blue's face. Her cloaked body drifted over to Brin's side. She turned toward the seething Riolu and smiled. "My, what I wouldn't give to have such an honest one like you as my son."

"I wish for you to not fret, my dear." her cloak reached down and patted Brin on her head. "For you see, Brin's condition isn't quite as bad as you might think."

Smiling, Mismagius lifted up Brin's blanket once more. Blue, despite still feeling hesitant, couldn't help but glance down at the Braixen's injured leg. In his mind, he expected to see the disgusting, terrible wounds that had covered his legs but a few hours ago. However...

"Wha... wait a minute...!"

Instead of horrid scars, there were faint, red – colored markings covering her leg. At a glance, it was easy to mistake them for real wounds. But upon closer inspection, Blue realized that they weren't actual cuts and bruises. Rather, it looked more like someone had spilled a few dollops of red paint on her fur instead.

"What is that?" Blue muttered as he stared at the odd markings on her leg.

"When Brin uses her powers, there is an interesting side effect to it. This is one of them." Mismagius let go of the blanket and tucked Brin's leg back inside. "Although I don't understand the exact specifics behind the Panacea, I do hold a few theories about it."

"Such as?"

Mismagius held up her cloak and pointed into the air, "The first of which is that Brin becomes excessively tired after using her powers, no matter how small the wound she cures."

"The second," Mismagius' cloak fell down, gesturing toward Brin, "is that whenever she cures somebody. Those strange markings appear on her body, mimicking the wounds she healed."

"And do those markings harm her?"

The specter shook her head, "As far as I know, no." Mismagiush held up her cloak and said, "However, I believe that those markings is the reason behind Brin falling asleep every time she uses the Panacea."

"Ah! I get it!" Blue clapped his paws together as something clicked inside of his mind, "She falls asleep because she needs to recover from using her power, right?"

"That may be the case, my dear," Mismagius chuckled as his beaming face, "but again, I don't know the exact specifics. And to be honest with you, I don't particularly wish to."

"Eh?" Blue tilted his head to the side as he folded his arms across the chest, "Why not?"

"I don't wish for my daughter to have this power, Blue," Mismagius murmured as she hovered over to Blue's side, "if anything, I wish for her to live a normal life. Just like you and Fée."

"Just like... us?"

Mismagius nodded, "It was because of her power that we've lived in this forest for so long. If I were to have her go around, using her power for everyone that asked for it, how would you think her life would be like?"

Blue's head lowered as he folded his arms across his chest, "...she would be sleeping all the time, recovering..."

"That's right, and that's why I believe... it would be better if no one knew about her power." Mismagius sighed and said, "If she could live like a normal girl without having to worry about people begging her to heal them, demanding her to use the Panacea..."

Blue gaped at Mismagius, confused, "H – hold on, what do you mean by that?"

Mismagius smiled and nudged Blue in the cheek, "It's not something you need to be worried about, my dear." She chuckled and added, "Trust me."

"Alright," Blue nodded, but his face still showed signs of concern.

"Blue," Mismagius patted Blue in the back with her cloak, grabbing his attention, "do you mind hearing out one more thing from this old Pokémon?"

"Sure," Blue nodded, smiling back at the ghost, "what is it, Mismagius?"

"It's just a favor– no, don't worry. It's not about that." Mismagius chuckled at the sudden change of expression of the Riolu's face at the mention of the word 'favor.' She gave him a playful poke in the cheek again and said, "Well, it's something along those lines. Just not that extreme."

"T – then, what is it?" Blue said, feeling flustered.

"Hm... how do I phrase this?" Mismagius covered her face with her cloak and pondered for a moment.

Then, after a few seconds of silence, she turned toward him and said, "Blue. Tomorrow morning, I want you and Fée to take my daughter and I with you back to Treasure Town."

"You want to come with us?" Blue tilted his head at the ghost, who nodded back at him. He folded his arms across his chest, mulling over her words, "But... why?"

Mismagius sighed as she draped Blue's blanket back around his shoulders. She tucked the edges of the soft cloth around his body, making sure he was nice and warm before giving him a little smile.

"My dear Brin deserves much more out of life than just living here in this forest with naught but an aging ghost and Oro for company." Her gaze flitted over to her daughter, "If possible, I would like for her to experience the outside world. The frontier, as you'd call it."

"But," Blue poked out his paw from inside of his blanket and pointed at Brin, "aren't you afraid that someone would demand or beg her for her Panacea power? Like you said before."

"True, that is one of my biggest fears," Mismagius' faced crinkled as she turned back to Blue, "but... I know one thing. One very important thing that alleviates my fear."

"What is it?"

With a quiet giggle, Mismagius took Blue's outstretched paw into the folds of her cloak and lifted it up to her face.

"It's that she will have two wonderful friends that would protect her." Mismagius gazed into Blue's red eyes, her expression filled with love and affection. "I will not demand you to marry my daughter, nor beg you to become my son, but I implore you... Blue."

She took the back of his paw up to her lips and kissed it.

"Be her friend, that is all I wish for."

Having given Blue her request, Mismagius released her grasp on the Riolu's paw. Blue, stunned, let his paw flop back to his side as he mulled over her words. A moment of silence passed before Blue made up his mind. A smile cracked on his blue face as he nodded at the nervous specter hovering before him.

"Of course I will."

A tender smile appeared on Mismagius' face as she hovered over to Blue. She threw her cloak wide and pulled Blue into a warm hug. As she cried tears of gratitude into his shoulder, she whispered into his ear.

"Thank you, Blue."


	26. You can just live as Brin!

**•   
Chapter 24**

**"You can just live as Brin!"**

* * *

A lazy yawn left my mouth as I roused from my sleep. With my eyes still closed, I stretched out my legs and neck. A satisfying popping sound came from my body as I loosened up my muscles, making me smile for no real reason. I put my paws on my cheeks, rubbing them while I rolled onto my back.

When I flopped onto my back, however, I felt as though something was pulled along with me. I opened my tired eyes and glanced down. Through my blurry vision, I spotted something big and yellow covering my body. Curious, I reached out with my paw and patted it without thinking.

"Mnn..." A jolt ran through my body, waking me up even further. The yellow thing made a low, moaning noise when I touched it! Startled, I rubbed away the blurriness and the sleep in my eyes to get a better look at it.

"Oh!" A sense of relief washed over me when I recognized what – or rather, who – it was. Brin was still sleeping away; her arms were wrapped around my side, and her cheek was resting against my fluffy tail as if it was a pillow. There was a warm, yellow blanket was lying on the ground beside us, unused and forgotten.

I let out another yawn as I patted the sides of my face with my paws, trying to beat away the rest of the drowsiness in my body. I shook my head and let out a deep breath of air. Feeling much more awake than before, I glanced around at my surroundings.

A bright ray of sunlight was shining into Brin and Mismagius' cabin, piercing through the darkness from the window. The fireplace was out, leaving nothing but charred logs and ash in the hearth. Specks of dust were floating around in the air, illuminated by the sunlight.

While Brin was still clinging onto my tail like a Shellder on a Slowbro, I noticed that Blue and Mismagius were both nowhere to be found inside the cabin. Feeling a little confused, I took another look around me, wondering if I had missed them snoozing somewhere. But no, both my blue – furred friend and Brin's cloaked mother were absent. All I could spot lying around us were dust – covered books and unused poufs.

I glanced over to the entrance to the cabin. The door was left ajar, squeaking as the morning breeze nudged back and forth on its aging hinges. Blue and Mismagius must be outside already, I assumed. To think that Blue would wake up before I did... how absurd! Giggling to myself, I shook my head and smiled. That was a little mean of me.

"Brin..?" I turned around and patted my friend on the head to rouse her from her sleep. She grumbled back at me and nuzzled her cheek deeper into my tail in defiance. Her arms wrapped tighter around my belly as well, making me cough a little.

Blue's grinning face came to mind as I prodded her nose, making it twitch. "Great, another heavy sleeper," I muttered to myself. I wedged my paws underneath her arms and tried to loosen them around my midsection. But she just hugged me even tighter in response, pinning my paws to my side.

"Brin, let go...!" I grumbled at her as I tried to pull my paws out. I've never met a more troublesome sleeper in my entire life! I felt my body stretch out as I put all my strength into yanking my legs out of her tight embrace. Her brow furrowed as she clung on even tighter to me, pushing the air out of my lungs.

I let loose a loud grunt of exertion as I increased the force behind my yanking in a desperate bid to free myself from her clutches. It became a crazy, one – sided tug of war between us. With me struggling to break out of her grasp while she continues to clamp down tighter and tighter. I can't believe just how much strength she has! And she's asleep too, no less!

After several minutes of muted struggling, I felt her grip loosen for just a moment. I used this opportunity to put all my strength behind one more pull. If this doesn't work, then I give up and I'm going back to sleep!

"Hnng!"

It was like a bar of soap slipping out of someone's paws. My paws, body and tail slipped out of her hold at a speed much faster than I expected. I tumbled across the empty cabin, rolling over the wooden floor and carpet like a furry ball before crashing into a pile of books. Pages, paper and dust scattered all around me as I laid there, upside down and standing on my head. A piece of paper landed on my chin as I sighed out of exasperation.

"Well, at least I'm free now," I mumbled. Puffing away the page on my face, I rolled over onto my feet and shook the dust off my fur. I lifted my paw up to my nose and flicked off a single obstinate mote of dust off my nose before letting out another relaxing yawn. Having gone through that harrowing experience pretty much knocked out all the drowsiness in my body. Smiling, I stretched out of my legs and trotted over to Brin, who was now snuggling with the fallen blanket in lieu of my absence.

"Brin, it's morning," I whispered into her ear as I patted her on the head. The snoozing Braixen let out an annoyed grumble and rolled the other way. Frowning, I gave her a hard poke in the back of the head and said – in a louder voice this time – "hey, come on. It's time to wake up!"

My words fell on deaf ears as she just grumbled again and dug her face deeper into the soft blanket. Sighing, I rubbed my cheek and sat down beside her. I glanced around the empty cabin, looking for anything I could use to try and wake her up. If there was a bucket of water, then I could use it to rouse her like I always do with Blue.

"Hee, hee," I shook my head and covered my giggles with my paw. I stood up and wandered over to the other side of Brin and bit onto her blanket. I pulled it up and threw it over her sleeping form. Fine then, if she wants to sleep; then let her sleep. Maybe Mismagius will have a better way to wake her up outside of drenching her face.

Once I made sure she was nice and snuggled up inside of the blanket, I turned toward the door with my tail held high. Glancing outside the window, I could see the bright day shining outside through the treetops. It looked like a nice, fine day today!

"Hiee!" All of a sudden, a jolt of pain ran through my tail as I began to walk toward the door. A powerful yank pulled me back, making me lose my balance. I tumbled forward, slipping off my front legs and falling flat onto the carpeted floor.

"Oww..." I rubbed my aching chin as I turned my head around at what happened. An exasperated sigh left my mouth when I saw Brin grabbing onto and hugging my tail again. Her face looked so peaceful and comfortable as she rested her cheek against my fur. Grumbling, I stumbled back onto my feet and turned toward the door. I put on a determined look on my face and trudged forth, carrying this weight attached to my behind.

Fine then. If you're going to be that way, then I'll just have to drag you outside!

* * *

As Brin and I exited the fallen log that the cabin was housed in, I spotted Mismagius' cloaked figure hovering over in the distance. She was floating over some kind of big, black cauldron that was emitting small clouds of steam into the air. A nice scent was floating around, making my nose twitch as I took a deep sniff. Feeling curious, I plodded over to Mismagius with Brin in tow.

"Oh my," Mismagius' head turned toward Brin and I as we neared the odd, steamy cauldron. A smile appeared on her face as she hovered down toward us, placing herself between Brin and my tail. She turned toward me and chuckled, "I see you've awakened, Fée. Good morning."

"Good morning to you too, Mismagius," I replied, beaming back at her, "I'm awake, but I can't say the same for Brin."

Mismagius covered her face with her cloak as she chuckled again. She floated over to Brin's side and fluffed the top of her head, "Well, she was always quite the heavy sleeper. Not to mention, Brin also spent a large amount of energy last night curing your friend, so I can't blame her for sleeping in."

"You're right!" My paw shot up to my mouth as the events of yesterday came flooding back into my mind. A wave of gratitude washed over me as I looked down at the sleeping Braixen on my tail. I looked up at Mismagius and said, "If it wasn't for Brin, Blue would still be limping and covered in scars."

I bowed my head down and expressed my overflowing gratitude, "Thank you so much, Mismagius! Thank you!"

"Mm... you're thanking the wrong Pokémon, my dear." Mismagius lifted the hem of her cloak and closed her eyes. A second later, a dim purple glow enveloped her body. She directed her cloak toward my tail, sending the glow over to Brin.

"Up you go now."

With a swish of her cloak, Mismagius lifted Brin up several inches into the air. Seconds later, I felt my behind leave the ground as well. Brin's arms were still wrapped tight around my tail, making it so that she tugged me up into the air along with her.

"Eep!" I cried out, feeling my back legs dangle in the breeze. I clung to the grass beneath me with my front paws, trying to anchor myself to the earth. Mismagius made an amused – sounding chuckle as she waved her cloak left and right, with Brin's body – and my behind – following her movements. A blush spread across my cheeks as Mismagius continued to shake my rump around in the air.

After several embarrassing seconds, Brin's grip loosened and relinquished my tail after one last shake. Now freed from her grasp, my lower body fell back down onto the grass with a thump. Feeling a little hot in the face from that ordeal, I picked myself up and tried to brush away the fire that was burning away in my cheeks. I'm a little glad that Blue wasn't anywhere to be seen. I would've been mortified if he saw that shameful display.

"I'm sorry about that, Fée," I heard Mismagius say in a voice that was all – too – happy sounding to be a sincere apology. I turned around and saw Brin snoozing away while hanging upside down in the air, while her mother hovered beside her, smiling wide. "I needed some way to detach her from your tail, and this way appeared to be the quickest."

"Mmmgh..." I wasn't subtle about showing her my displeasure with her method. Still grumbling, I turned around and flicked my tail at her, which elicited another amused chuckle from the cloaked Pokémon.

"How about I make it up to you, my dear?" Mismagius said as she hovered past me. She paused in front of the big cauldron, smiling.

"What do you mean?" I said as I backed away a few paces as she put Brin down beside me. The Braixen's hands were already reaching back out toward my tail.

Mismagius didn't respond. Instead, she held the hem of her cloak into the air and waved it around. As she did so, five balls of fire appeared from out of thin air around her. They burned with a pretty blue color as they spun around her. With an almost carefree – looking flick of her cloak, Mismagius sent the fireballs toward the cauldron.

The flames struck the logs that were stuck underneath the cauldron, and erupted into a bright orange flame. I flinched as a wave of heat flew into my face, making me fold my ears back and my nose twitch. The clouds of steam that were coming from the cauldron earlier intensified into a huge tower of white, stretching up into the air and touching the canopy of leaves above.

"Wow...!" I gasped, breathless from excitement, "What is that, Mismagius? Are you making some sort of special soup like yesterday?"

"Hm, hm..." Mismagius covered her face with her cloak as she chuckled. "Breakfast will come later, my dear. For now, how about a little relaxation?"

"Relaxation?" I echoed, confused.

Mismagius swooped down next to me and put her cloak against my forehead. She rubbed at my fur, flaking a few dried bits of dirt and grime from yesterday's battle. As she cleaned off my face, I started to become aware of just how dirty my body was. That Sylveon's face from town – Barie's – came to mind, along with his mindful comments about grooming and being clean.

Feeling self – conscious again, I tried to brush away some grains of dirt from my ruff, but Mismagius stopped me by wrapping her cloak around my paw. I looked up into her face and saw her shaking her head while smiling.

"There's no need for that," she said, "not when there's a perfectly good bath in front of you."

"A – a bath?!" I shouted, my eyes widening. My paws flew up to my ruff, pressing against my chest. I felt my heart beat like mad from excitement. A big smile was forming on my face as I stared at the aromatic cauldron with glee sparkling in my eyes.

"You look excited, Fée," Mismagius said with a chuckle.

I spun around with an astonished look on my face, "How can I not be excited?" My paws flew up to my cheeks as I closed my eyes, "Ooh... I've always heard about how delightful a hot bath is, but I've never had a chance to experience one for myself!"

"You've never had a bath before?" Mismagius said, looking a little surprised. A blush came onto my face as I realized what I said.

I quickly shook my head and clarified, "No, no. I've had baths before. But I've never had something as luxurious as a hot bath before!"

"I see," the odd expression on Mismagius' face faded into a warm smile as she let go of my face. Her cloak wrapped around my right ear and undid Blue's ribbon.

"Well then, I hope you'll enjoy your first – ever hot bath, my dear."

* * *

_Thunk! Thunk! K – thunk!_

"There, that should do it."

Giving a short nod of approval, Blue dropped the rock he was holding in his paw and flopped down onto the ground. He laid on his back on the soft grass and released a long, tired breath into the air. His arms were aching, and his head was pounding. His furry body was covered with a mixture of dirt, wood chippings and the occasional leaf.

He was back at the decimated grove from yesterday. Team Skull – that is, Zubat and Koffing – were nowhere to be seen now. All that was left of their presence was a massive crater, and the charred remains of Brin's Mago trees.

Despite feeling exhausted and grimy, the Riolu wore a pride – filled smile on his face. With a grunt of exertion, he picked up his head and sat up from the ground. He supported his weight with his arms as he beamed at the big, wooden contraption lying ahead of him.

He had been working on this project for most of the morning without rest. The searing, burning energy that Brin had imparted into his body yesterday had prevented him from being able to just lie down and sleep. So, instead of wasting away all the excess energy sizzling inside of him, he decided to make use of it somehow.

"So what do you think?" Blue turned his head to the side and grinned, "Is it sturdy enough to hold all of us?"

_Groaaar..._

The earth shook for a moment as the heavy Trevenant set himself down beside Blue. Oro, now looking healthy and refreshed, folded his arms as he bent himself forward in a tree – like imitation of a nod. Blue let out an amused laugh as he patted Oro's trunk.

"I'll take that as a yes," Blue said, muffling his mouth with his paw as he turned his head back to their creation.

It was an idea that came to his mind after accepting Mismagius' request. He figured that, since both Fée and Brin were exhausted after yesterday's ordeal, he should figure out a way to make the trip back to Treasure Town less daunting. After all, the route they took to get to the Forlorn Forest involved quite a hike through several tall hills and vast fields.

Therefore, he thought of mimicking something he saw during his first trip into Treasure Town. It wasn't a perfect copy, and compared to the ones tugged by the Tauros back at town, it looked rather pathetic. But for Blue, it was something to be proud of.

It was his own caravan. Or, to be fair, his and Oro's.

"You think they'll be surprised when they see this?" Blue said, "I can't wait to see their faces."

_Groaar..._

At first, despite having a clear idea of what he wanted to make, Blue had no clue how to even begin. It wasn't until he ran into the guardian of the forest once more before work on his project could even get off the ground. Much to Blue's surprise, the Trevenant was already well – versed in woodcraft and carpentry. All the Riolu had to do was sketch out a design on the dirt, and Oro would bring him the materials from the forest.

The odd pair spent most of the morning working side – by – side on their project. Oro would take the lumber he brought from the forest and mold them into various shapes for Blue to use. After several hours of backbreaking labor, they finished it.

Their so – called caravan resembled a long, wooden table mounted atop two logs. The pair of logs were placed on their side in order to form wheels at the back. A single stick was embedded in the surface, with one of Mismagius' large blankets draped over it to make a tent. It wasn't very wide, but it was enough to fit at least an Eevee and a Braixen.

Blue scratched the side of his face as he admired their work. He turned toward Oro, who was giving the caravan a fond, approving look with his single eye.

"Hey, Oro," Blue said, tapping him in the trunk, "thanks for your help."

_Groar? _Oro made a questioning groan as he turned to face Blue.

"If you hadn't come along, I'd probably just be sitting in a pile of twigs and leaves."

_Grooar._

Blue scratched his cheek and glanced away, looking a little bashful. "Also, I wanna apologize for yesterday."

_Groar?_

"You know, for breaking your arms."

_Groar._

"I know they grow back and all, but it still hurt, right?"

_Groar._

"They don't?"

_ Groar._

"So is that a yes or a no?"

_Groar..._

"You're not making this easy for me, are you?"

_Groar._

"You're annoying, you know that?

_Groar._

Unable to contain his irritation, Blue punched Oro in the side. Oro let out an echoing laugh and returned the favor by poking the Riolu in the cheek. Blue, annoyed and amused, retaliated with a kick aimed at his roots.

_Groar!_ Oro moved his root to the side and made it so Blue's foot got caught on the wood, throwing him off balance and throwing him onto the ground with a _thud!_

"Why you!" Smirking, Blue pushed himself off the ground and punched Oro in the claw, "I'm trying to be honest here and you're just making fun of me!"

_Goho! _Oro let out a creaky chuckle and grabbed onto Blue's fist. With his superior height and strength, he pulled the Riolu off the ground and high up into the air. Dangling like a puppet on a string, Blue's feet flailed around in the air, kicking and swinging as he tried to free himself from the tree's clutches.

"This isn't fair!" Blue growled as he tried to punch Oro's arm, but all he got was a bunch of splinters embedded in his fist. But then, as he looked up at the smiling tree, an idea popped into Blue's mind. With a loud shout, he began to swing his entire body forward and back, building up momentum like a pendulum. Once he had enough speed, he flung himself over and curled his torso around Oro's arm. He perched himself atop Oro's arm like a bird, nestling his feet on the Trevenant's leafy wrist.

"How's that?" Blue smirked as he wrestled with Oro's arm, "You might have my paw, but I have your arm!"

_Groar...!_ Oro wiggled his arm around in a playful manner, trying to shake the Riolu off. Despite his best efforts though, Blue was obstinate and clung on tight like a Staryu on a rock. After a minute of frantic arm shaking and growling, Oro gave up and let go of the Riolu's paw in defeat. Smiling, Blue adjusted his perch on the Trevenant's arm and sat down straight.

"Alright then!" Blue shouted as he patted the side of Oro's head, "Let's head back like this. We can surprise Mismagius and the girls with our project later."

_Groar!_

With a happy growl, Oro raised up both of his arms and stood up on his six root – like legs. But, as he turned to face the grove's exit, Blue tapped the side of Oro's head.

"Hold on a moment," the Riolu said, "I just had an idea. Can you turn around for a moment?"

_Groar?_

Oro obliged and spun around so that the two of them were now looking at the great crater in the center of the grove. Blue jabbed a paw at side of the crater, where the remnants of Brin's Mago trees lay.

"I have an idea that I think your sister'll appreciate," Blue leaned his muzzle close to the side of Oro's head, "here, let me tell you..."

* * *

This... this is bliss.

Never before had I experienced such a wondrous feeling. I was up to my ruff in hot water, letting it soak deep into my fur and heat up my body. It felt like the water was washing away all my troubles, cleaning off my aches and carrying away all my worries with the steam. Not only that, there was a delightful fragrance emanating from the water, reminding me a little of the soup Mismagius made yesterday.

The heat, the scent, the steam... it was all so comfortable, so calming that I almost want to just lie my head against the surface of the water and just... melt away...

"How's the water, my dear?"

My eyes fluttered open at the sound of Mismagius' voice. Through the white steam, I could just make out the faint outline of her cloaked body. A loose, silly smile was on my face as I raised up my head just a bit.

"It's... it's wonderful..." My voice was just as transient as the steam, "I wish... I wish I could have a hot bath every day..."

"I'm glad you're enjoying it," she said, chuckling, "now, would you mind scooting over a little? Someone else would like to join you."

I nodded through my steam – addled mind. Like a lazy Slakoth, I paddled out of the center of the cauldron and over to the side. Warm water swished around me as I moved, licking my face and splashing me with little droplets of heat.

"In you go, my dear."

The water level of the cauldron rose just a tad as another body joined me inside the bath. I squinted through the steam and saw a yellow silhouette sitting across from me. Feeling a sluggish glee welling up inside my heart, I circled around the cauldron until I was right beside her.

"Hello, Brin!" I said, giving her a lazy wave of my paw. "Good morning!"

Brin's face loomed out of the white cloud as she turned toward me. Her eyes still looked unfocused, and the fur on her face was all messed up – no doubt from all that nuzzling she did in her sleep earlier. A smile crawled onto her face as she returned my wave, but she was quickly interrupted by a large, tired yawn. Giggling, I watched as she rubbed away the sleep in her eyes with her hand.

I prodded her in the shoulder, grabbing her attention. I gestured to the water and made a downward motion with my paw. She seemed to understand, as she nodded at me with a smile. We shared a giggle and let ourselves sink up to our necks in the water. The two of us sighed in unison as we both relaxed in the warmth together, letting the quiet crackling of the flames below serenade us in the bath.

"You two enjoy your bath now." Mismagius' voice floated through the steam like a breeze, "I'll be off to do some cleaning. I'll only be gone for just a moment."

Brin and I were both too enamored with the bath to reply with words, so we just nodded together. Mismagius chuckled at us before floating away to somewhere.

"Mnn..." Brin made a quiet noise as she washed her face with the water. I mimicked her motions, cupping the water with my paw. However, with my dulled senses, I ended up throwing the water too hard and splashing into my face. I coughed and sneezed as water went into my nose, making it twitch and sting.

Warm water dripped off of my soaked face, making me look like a shaggy Stoutland. Brin broke out in titters as I turned toward her. Feeling abashed, I wiped off the water on my face and gave her a playful frown. With my paws, I cupped up some bathwater and threw it at her face. Her quiet laughter stopped as she took a pawful of water.

_Splash!_

"Hee hee!" I giggled as the white fur on her face drooped down from the water. Her cheeks puffed out as she wrung the water out of her fur. Then, my mirth was interrupted by a sudden spray into my face.

"Hee!"

Annoyed that I looked like a Stoutland again, I sent Brin a glare through my weighty fur. An evil smirk crawled onto my lips as I lowered my paw under the surface of the water where she can't see it. Then, with the ferocity of a Sharpedo, I attacked!

"Hieee!" She let out a cute cry as I tickled her in the sides. The water in the cauldron splished and splashed as she wriggled around like crazy, trying to get away from my paws. Who would've thought that the Legendary Panacea Elixir would be so ticklish?

"Ha!" I finished my assault by prodding her in the chest, eliciting one last giggle out of her before we both sat back down in the bath. We glanced at each other, both of us looking rather frazzled and messy from that all of that. Then, we broke out in laughter.

Even though we're both soggy and frumpy, it was just so much fun to take a bath with a friend! I've never had this much fun cleaning myself before, I must admit! It was so entertaining, and we're just sitting inside of a pot of hot water!

After our bout of laughter ended, we both sat back down and let out a loud sigh of contentment together. Closing my eyes to relax, I lowered my mouth beneath the surface of the water and blew out some bubbles.

"Feeh... fuuh..."

"Hm...?" My ears twitched when I heard something odd. I turned toward Brin and opened my eyes. She was opening and closing her mouth, as if she was trying to say something. Her cheeks were red, and her eyes were squeezed shut like she was concentrating hard.

"Feeeh...!" She managed to squeak out. Her voice was quiet, but it sounded very pretty. It was like listening to a little flute being played.

"Are you trying to say my name?" I said, lifting myself out of the water. Blushing, Brin looked at me and nodded. Giggling, I shook some water off my face and straightened my back. I held my paw up to my mouth and took a deep breath.

"It's pronounced Fée. Faaaaaay."

"Feeeeh..."

"No, not like that," I pointed to my mouth with my paws and showed my front teeth, "you put your teeth on your bottom lip and say it like this: Faaaaaay"

"Fuh... fooh..."

Brin furrowed her brow as she bit down on her lip in an attempt to follow my instructions. Her eyes squeezed shut, and her cheeks puffed out as she struggled with vocalizing the syllables in my name.

"Faaah..."

"You're getting close!" I cheered her on, clapping my paws together in front of me, "Like this! Faaaaay...!"

"Faah... faaeh..."

"Oh!" My face lit up when I heard that last attempt, "You're close! Just a little more! Faaay!"

"Faaeh... faaay...!"

A bright, beaming smile appeared on her face as she realized what she just said. "Faaay...! Fée! Fée!"

"You did it Brin!" I rejoiced, throwing my paws around her and pulling her into a big hug. She hugged me back, laughing and cheering.

"Fée!"

"Brin!"

"Féée!"

"Briiin!"

We continued to repeat each others' names as we spun around in the cauldron, oblivious of everything else around us. Water swished around in the cauldron, creating a whirlpool in the middle. Some of our bathwater spilled out of the edge, drenching the grass and sending steam everywhere. But we didn't care, we were just too wrapped up in our reverie to mind.

"You two seem like you're having a lot of fun in there."

All of a sudden, a new voice joined in our midst. We stopped spinning and turned around to see who it was.

"Yo, good morning partner," Blue raised up his paw and grinned at us. "you too Brin. You're looking nice and energetic today."

"Blue!" I shouted, surprised. I waded over to his side of the cauldron and leaned over the edge, smiling wide at my partner. "Good morning!"

He reached over and patted me on the head, sending a little jolt of happiness racing through me. As he fluffed my fur, I glanced down past his torso and down to his legs. His right leg, to be specific. To my relief, his leg was black and devoid of any angry red scars or wounds. I let out a deep sigh and draped my body over the edge of the cauldron, letting my head and paws hang over the side.

"How are you feeling, Blue?" I asked, tilting my head up and staring at him sideways, "Is your leg okay?"

"Of course it is," Blue stated as he put his paws on his hips, "I was cured by the Legendary Panacea Elixir, after all. Isn't that right, Brin?"

"Mnn!" Brin clapped her paws in front of her chest and nodded in agreement with me.

"Do you want to come in too, Blue?" I asked, putting a coy expression on my face, "It feels really nice and comfortable in here! You'll love it!"

To my disappointment, my partner shook his head. He gestured toward his forehead with his paw and said, "Nah, I'll have to pass on that." He gave me a sideways grin, "I've been busy with something all morning, so I'm just a bundle of sweat and grime right now. You wouldn't want that in your soup there."

"Oh, it'll be fine!" I reached out the pot and grabbed him by the paw. Inwardly, I was a little shocked by how bold I was being. Maybe it was because of the steam making my emotions feel looser than usual, "It's a bath! You're supposed to clean yourself up in here!"

"You're being surprisingly forward today, Fée," he commented, poking me in the nose. Frowning, I puffed out my cheeks and bit down on his paw with my teeth, making him wince. Then, while he was recovering from that, I used all my strength to yank him inside.

_Splash!_

Blue fell into the bath face – first, sending our bathwater and steam spraying everywhere. Brin and I both let out loud giggles as Blue's head popped out of the water like a drenched Diglett. His fur was all wet and matted down, making him look much skinnier than usual. Water droplets were scattered every – which – way as he shook his head in an effort to dry himself off.

I shot Brin a mischievous look and held my paws under the bathwater. She seemed to catch my drift, and smirked back at me. Once Blue was done drying himself off, he frowned at us and opened his mouth.

"What was that for, Fée?"

"Hee, hee!" I nodded at Brin and shouted, "Now!"

At my command, both of us began to pelt him with waves and waves of steamy water. His face became drenched once more under our combined assault, forcing him to cower and cover himself with his paws. Our laughter filled the air as we tormented our Riolu friend.

"Geh! Cut it – cut it out!" He shouted over the sounds of bathwater spraying into his face, "I give up! I give! Bleeh!"

Both of his paws shot up in defeat, signaling Brin and I to his surrender. Feeling excited and proud that I managed to 'defeat' my partner, I grabbed on to Blue's arm while wearing a big smile and began to laugh. Brin, following my lead, grabbed onto his other arm and tittered along with me. Stuck in between the two of us, all Blue could do was sigh and shake his head while the two of us scrubbed away at his body.

"Alright, you win," he said with an air of defeat. With a crooked smile on his face, he sank himself up to his chin into the bath and closed his eyes. After several minutes of cleaning had passed, Brin and I let go of his arms and submerged ourselves as well, enjoying what was left of our bathwater together.

Blue made a loud, relaxing yawn and smiled, "You know Fée... you're right." His arms reached out of the water as he stretched them over his head, "This really is comfortable. I think I can get used to something like this..."

"Isn't it?" I mimicked his motions, stretching out my legs as well. I looked over at him and said, "What if we asked the guild to install a bath like this in the guildhouse? Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Blue made a bark – like laugh and grabbed onto my paws.

"I know I'd be in those baths every day if that was true," Blue remarked as he wiggled my paws around, "let's bring it up when we get back. I bet no one would object."

"Hee, hee!" I pulled my paws out of his grasp and retaliated with a quick poke in his ribs, "That's something to look forward to when we're back home, hm?"

"Definitely," he replied, patting my head. I felt my tail my tail swish around underwater as I enjoyed the feeling of his paw between my ears. "Speaking of heading back home," Blue turned to his other side, facing Brin with a grin on his face. He held out his paw to her and said, "how about it, Brin?"

Brin froze in the middle of washing her ears and turned toward him. Her head cocked to the side, her face wearing an expression of confusion. Her inquiring eyes asked mine, but I just replied with an apologetic shake of my head. I didn't know what my partner meant by what he said either.

"Heh," Blue shook his head and clarified, "what I mean is, do you want to come to Treasure Town with Fée and I?"

The Braixen's eyes flew wide open, and her hands shot up to her face, covering up her wide – open mouth. I couldn't hold back my surprise as well. My head spun around so fast that the world became a blur. Blue, for all his forwardness, didn't seem to be affected by our shocked expressions at all. Instead, he just held out his paw and continued on with that silly grin on his face.

"It'll be great!" Blue said, "I don't know much about the town yet, but it's a really interesting place – filled with fun sights and a lot of different Pokémon!"

"Y – yeah!" Realizing what Blue was trying to do, I swam over to Brin's other side and clasped my paws around her hand, "You should come back with us, Brin!" As I shook her hand, I felt as though excited sparkles were flashing about in my mind.

"Treasure Town's a great place! There's all kinds of neat stores that sell all kinds of things, and restaurants that make the most wonderful meals." A thought popped into my mind, making me smile wide at my friend, "And there's Mr. Mime's library too! Remember?"

She must have, since her entire expression brightened up as she nodded. I giggled and let go of her hand and stuck my paw up into the steamy air.

"We can go together," I suggested, "and see if anyone brought in some new books about Dusknoir, or even any other books you might like! There's a gigantic –" I illustrated my words by throwing my paws out wide, "_gigantic _selection of books in there! Trust me!"

Brin's jaw dropped wide open in response to my show, while Blue chuckled away behind her. I continued to beam at my friend through the steam, hoping that she'll consider our offer.

But, Brin's expression faded into a sad frown as she shook her head at me. When I saw that, I felt like a balloon popped inside of me, letting out my enthusiasm like deflating air. My legs flopped back into the bathwater with a dull splash, and my ears flattened atop my head in disappointment.

"Y – you don't want to?" I said, dejected, "Why not?"

Brin held her hands in front of her chest and sighed. She shook her head again and gave me a sad smile as she pointed at herself with a finger.

"Are you worried about being the Panacea?" Blue said, folding his arms across his chest. Brin gave him a small nod and sighed.

Despite my disappointment, I could understand how she was feeling. After all, she spent most of her life living in seclusion because of her power. For Brin, the though of returning to society might be rather frightening to her.

"Don't worry about it!"

All of a sudden, Blue threw his arm around Brin's shoulders and laughed. Both Brin and I gaped at the Riolu, shocked and bewildered by his outburst. Brin let out a startled cry and squirmed, her face turning bright red. Blue stopped laughing and grinned at the blushing Braixen.

"If you're scared of being the Panacea, then just hide it away!" Blue said, grabbing onto her hands, "You can just live as Brin! Not as the Legendary Panacea Elixir. After all, I'm sure only we know about your powers, and we've already promised to never tell anyone, right Fée?"

"R – right!"

My eyes brightened up at Blue's suggestion. He had a point, outside of us and Mismagius, the only other Pokémon that would know about Brin's status as the Panacea would be Duskull and the Guildmaster! And since they were the ones who swore us into secrecy about it in the first place, I doubt that they would tell anybody about it!

Following Blue's lead, I tossed my paws around Brin's side too, pulling her into a tight, affectionate hug.

"Blue right," I said, nodding at my friend, "your secret's safe with us, Brin. No one will ever know about your powers, and even if someone finds out..."

Blue chuckled and flexed his right arm, "I'll protect you."

"_We'll_ protect you!" I added, prodding Blue in the nose, "We're friends, after all. If anyone tries to harass you, we'll support you!"

"So, what do you say?" Blue asked again, grinning, "Do you want to come back to town with us?"

With both turned to look at Brin wearing expectant smiles on our faces. For a moment, the Braixen didn't move at all. Her head was drooped down, with her nose almost touching the water. A weighty tension was tugging at my heart as I waited for her response. Doubt, eagerness and hope were mixing together in my mind as I clutched my paws together.

Then, after a minute of silence, she lifted her head and opened her mouth.

"Y... yes..."

Tears of joy welled up in my eyes as I rushed forward and embraced my new friend. Brin hugged me back, throwing her arms around my neck and rubbing her cheek against mine. Blue, for his part, put his paws atop both of our heads and laughed along with us. Then, the three of us threw our heads back and let loose a raucous cheer into the skies.

"Fée!" Brin shouted, smiling wide while water streamed down her face. I couldn't tell whether the droplets were from the bath or her eyes. But in the end, I decided that it didn't matter. I was just so happy to have made a new friend!

* * *

"Oh my, just look at the state the three of you are in."

Brin and I both grinned back at Mismagius as we shivered in the grass. Our fur was completely and utterly drenched, making the two of us look way skinnier than normal. Blue, thanks to his thinner coat of fur, looked normal in comparison. Though, judging by the way he kept sneezing in the corner, I'm willing to bet he was feeling the chill as well.

"Dear me, I better get you three bundled up before you catch a cold." Mismagius shook her head and conjured up three thick, fluffy blankets. With her incredible powers, she made the blankets wrap around our waterlogged bodies. I grabbed onto my blanket with my paw and pulled it tight around me, enjoying the soft warmth it provided.

"Thanks, Mismagius," I said to the cloaked Pokémon. Mismagius gave me a nod and smile as she floated over to Brin. With her cloak, she wiped off the water dripping off of her daughter's face.

Blue, with his blanket tied around his neck like a cape, waddled over to me and took hold of mine. "Here, let me help you." Nodding, I sat up up straight and held still while my partner dried off my fur with the blanket.

I c losed my eyes and took a deep breath. Now that my head was free from the steam, my dulled thoughts began to sharpen again. The first thing that came to mind was just how bold I acted while in the bath. Not only did I bite my friend's paw, I even brought him into the bath with Brin and I. What was I doing? That's... that's...

"Fée, your face is burning up!" Blue held his paw against my sizzling hot face, "Your fur's all red too! Did you catch a chill?"

"N – no, I'm alright..." I mumbled, covering up my blush with my blanket, "I'm just a little tired, that's all. Don't worry about it."

"If you're sure..." Blue still had a concerned look on his face, but, to my great relief, he didn't pry further. Taking a deep breath, I tried to wrangle with calming my beating heart and quashing my rising blush. However, the awkward sensation of his paws scrubbing all over my drenched fur wasn't making it easy for me.

After several discomforting minutes had passed by, Blue finished his drying and pulled the blanket off. A twinge of excitement ran through my body as I felt the cool air brush against my fur. I stretched out my legs and shook my entire body, shooing away the last few stubborn drops of water on my fur.

"Pfft," I opened up one eye and glanced up at Blue, who was busy trying to stifle a snicker with my blanket.

"What's so funny?"

Blue shook his head and pointed at me, "N – no, it's just..." his excuse was interrupted by a quiet chuckle. He coughed into his paw and said, "your fur... you look like a great big ball of fluff!"

He broke out in mirthful laughter after spouting that out. Grumbling out of annoyance and embarrassment, I lowered my head and butted him in the chest.

"I can't help having a thick coat!" I growled, grinding my forehead into his torso. Blue just laughed and pinched my cheeks in response.

"Ha... I'm sorry," he said, shaking his head. With a hmph, I detached my head from his chest and stuck my tongue out at him. Blue just returned my indignation with a grin and blotted away a drop of water on my cheek with his paw.

"Have the two of you dried yourselves off now?"

Blue and I turned toward the sound of Mismagius' voice. The cloaked Pokémon was hovering toward us with a fluffy – looking Brin following close behind her. As soon as I caught sight of Brin, I had to cover my mouth with my paw to prevent myself from breaking out in giggles. It was just like Blue said. She looked like a great big ball of yellow and white fluff.

Brin was covering her pink – tinted face with her tail, evidently embarrassed about her appearance. I couldn't blame her, I was in the exact same situation. Mismagius and Blue both tittered over our mutual puffiness, making the two of us grumble out of embarrassment and annoyance.

"So then," Mismagius waved her cloak at us, as if she was brushing away the awkward air, "I've heard from my daughter that the three of you have decided on something." She held out her cloak to me, handing me a pink strip of cloth. "Would you mind letting this old granny in on the secret?"

I giggled and shook my head, "It's not really a secret, Mismagius," I reached up with my paw and took my ribbon back from her, "in fact, we were planning on telling you anyway."

"Oh?" Mismagius chuckled, "Then, do tell, my dear."

I handed my ribbon over to Blue, who understood my intentions and began to twirl it around my right ear. Beaming, I sat down and looked up into Mismagius' face and announced with an excited shout, "We're going to take Brin back to Treasure Town with us, Mismagius!"

"As I had hoped," with a whooping laugh, the cloaked Pokémon swooped down to her daughter's side and pulled her into a big hug. "I'm so happy for you, my dear Brin!"

"Mnn!" Brin made a happy cry and hugged her mother back, smiling wide.

Blue and I both watched as the happy family rejoiced together. But, as I sat there – letting Blue tie my ribbon for me – something at the back of my head began to irk me. I turned around and glanced up at Blue, who had his tongue sticking out of the side his mouth as he focused on my ear.

"Hey, Blue," I said, drawing his attention from my ear to me, "I have a question."

"Hm?" Blue tilted his head to the side as he pulled my ribbon taut, "What is it?"

"It's about how we're going to get home," I said, "is your leg feeling well enough for that long walk back?"

"Walk?" A smirk appeared on my partner's face, filling me with a sense of bewilderment. He let go of my ribbon and fluffed the poofy fur on top of my head. "I told you, I'm fine with walking. You and Brin on the other hand..."

"Eh? Brin and I?" I cocked my head to the side, wondering what he meant.

"Come on, I'll show you," Blue stepped back and waved his paw in the air, "Brin! Mismagius! Can you two come with us for a bit?"

"My, whatever could it be?" Mismagius said. She and Brin looked at each other for a second, sharing a mutual look of confusion.

"Let's go, Fée!" Blue grabbed onto my paw, pulling me onto my feet, "I guarantee that you'll love it!"

"H – hey! Hold on! I can't run with only three legs!"

* * *

_Groar!_

As the four of us stepped into the grove, an ear – splitting roar erupted from the center of the decimated clearing. Then, it was followed by a series of loud, earth – shaking rumbles. Before I knew what I was doing, I was already hiding behind Blue and peeking out from behind his back.

"Oro!" With an energetic shout, the shield I was cowering behind left me behind and rushed toward the rumbling. I let out a yelp and fell onto my behind, startled.

_Groar!_

Another loud roar rang out as I picked myself off the dirt. Oro, the guardian of the forest, the Trevenant that we ended up fighting by utter accident yesterday was trundling toward us like a big, lumbering beast. His thick, log – like arms were extended wide as my partner hurled himself at him. Blue, with the deftness of a Mankey, grabbed a hold of Oro's arm and swung himself onto it.

"Hey, sorry I took so long!" Blue spun himself around and threw a playful punch at the moving tree trunk, "I got a little sidetracked."

_Groar._

"Okay," Blue shook his head and shrugged, "I got really sidetracked."

With a noisy creak, Oro nodded and folded his branch arms in front of him, making Blue wriggle about and yelp at his sudden movement. Unable to hold on any longer, my partner dropped onto the ground, shaking his head and chuckling into the air.

"The two of you sure became fast friends," Mismagius commented as she hovered over to the boys. She covered her mouth and chuckled while Brin and I followed in her wake. She patted Oro's arm and said, "it's hard to imagine the two of you having that fight just a day ago."

Blue scratched his nose as he used one of Oro's roots to help himself back up. He knocked the back of his paw against Oro's trunk and grinned, "Of course! We worked out our differences in the end, didn't we?"

_Groar._

Oro bonked my partner over the head with a claw, knocking him back onto the ground and making him wince.

"Well, maybe not everything yet." Blue said with a lopsided grin as he rubbed the bump on his head.

Mismagius, Brin and I all began to giggle at their antics. As we laughed, I noticed that there was something strange and eye – catching lying behind the Trevenant. I tilted my head to the side, and narrowed my eyes. It looked a lot like an indecipherable jumble of logs and sticks.

"What's that?" I asked, puzzled as to what that strange construction was. Blue and Oro both glanced at each other for a moment, before their faces both cracked into a big, beaming smile. Well, Blue smiled wide enough for the both of them.

"That!" Blue hollered as he stepped over to the side. He swept his arms over to his side, presenting the wooden whatever – it – is with a prideful air. Then, he puffed out his chest and shouted, "Is our caravan!"

"Eh?"

"Eh?"

"Mn?"

I think the three of us had the exact same thought rushing through our heads when Blue made his big presentation. It was either: 'what did he just say?' or 'that's a caravan?!' Out of all of us, I recovered first.

"B – by caravan... you mean like the ones being tugged by Tauros and Bouffalant back at town?"

"Yup!" Blue hopped over to the mass of wood and knocked on it with his knuckles as she spoke in a voice filled with pride, "The very same!"

"How..." I shook my head, trying to make sense of this odd situation, "how did you even build it? When did you even build it? Wha – what is it?!"

Blue folded his arms across his chest, looking miffed. "It's a caravan! Oro and I spent all morning working on it, and I think it turned out great!"

"Well... it's certainly something, I suppose." Mismagius hovered over the yellow blanket that they had stretched over the top of the wooden... caravan, "Is this the blanket you borrowed from me earlier?"

"The very same," Blue said with a hint of smugness, "you don't mind if we use it, do you?"

"Not at all," Mismagius chuckled as she sat herself on top of the caravan's rough surface. Her cloak flew up to her mouth as she let out a light chuckle, "It's surprisingly comfortable."

The cloaked Pokémon patted the surface beside her and beckoned Brin and I over with her cloak, "Come, have a seat with granny, my dears."

Brin and I shared a worried glance. How could we not? The so – called caravan looked less like a solid object, and more like a bundle of sticks and lumber that might fall apart at any moment! But, as I looked at the eager, almost child – like expression present on Blue's face, I felt my worries melt away into exasperation. Well, if he made it for us, the least I could do was give it a try.

"Alright," I said, wearing a wary smile, "Blue, can you help me up?"

"Certainly!"

With the help of my partner, I clambered on top of his contraption and seated myself underneath the blanket beside Mismagius. At first, I thought the entire thing would just collapse under my weight. But then, to my utter astonishment, not only did the makeshift caravan hold itself together, it was remarkably sturdy as well! Even the shade cast by the blanket – tent was enough to cover my entire body.

"How does it feel?" Blue asked as he helped Brin up as well. The entire caravan lurched as it picked up the weight of a Braixen as well. But aside from that one rough bump, the entire thing still held firm. Unmoving and strong.

"It's incredible!" I couldn't hold back my sheer incredulity as I gaped at Blue's grinning face. I clapped my paws together and nodded in admiration at Blue and Oro, "I'm amazed! I really am!"

"I am as well," Mismagius added. She pointed her cloak at the Trevenant standing beside the caravan and said, "you've quite outdone yourself this time, Oro."

_Groar._ Oro made a loud, creaking noise as he lurched forward in a bow.

"I helped too..." Blue grumbled, puffing out his cheeks. Mismagius, Brin, Oro and I all laughed at his indignation, with Oro patting him in the back with his claw.

"Yes, of course you have," Mismagius said, waving her cloak at him, "it was your idea after all. My, I was wondering what you were up to this whole time. To think you were building such a thing..." Her cloak flew up to her mouth again as she stifled an amused chuckle, "You're quite a resourceful one."

"Thanks!" Blue clapped his paws together as he basked in Mismagius' praise.

"But that only makes me feel a little disappointed..." Mismagius floated over to Blue's side and smirked, "are you absolutely sure you don't want to be my son? She wouldn't mind, you know. And I would love to have a clever boy like you with me..."

"H – hey, Oro! How about we show them how this thing moves!?"

All of a sudden, Blue spun around and sped away from Mismagius at a surprising speed. As he began to chatter with Oro, Mismagius hovered back to the caravan, giggling. She sat herself between Brin and I, and wrapped her cloak around both of us.

"You have an entertaining partner, Fée," she said, smiling at me, "you're quite lucky to have him by your side."

"I... huh?"

I glanced up into her shining face, seeking an answer. But, all I received was a shake of a head and a stifled giggle, making me feel more confused than anything else. I looked over to Brin, but she seemed like she didn't know either.

"Alright!" My questions would remain unanswered though, as my attention was drawn away by Blue's hearty shout. All three of us turned to face the front of the caravan, where Blue and Oro were standing. My partner held his arm up into the air and shouted.

"Oro, would you mind doing the honors?"

_Groar!_

With an eager roar, Oro's claws grasped onto the front of the caravan and – without showing any exertion at all – lifted it up into the air. Brin and I grabbed onto each other, terrified, as the caravan made a sudden upward lurch. Mismagius, on the other hand, laughed and made an excited – sounding whoop.

Once Oro had a firm purchase on the caravan, he spun around and began to run around the grove in a wide circle, tugging us along with him. With every step he took, the caravan trundled along with it. We charged through the loamy soil, sending mud and dirt splattering everywhere.

Once again, I was dumbstruck at how solid this creation of theirs was. All things considered, even though the caravan wasn't the... best looking thing in the world, the movement was smooth and was pretty comfortable.

"Haha, it works!" I heard Blue let out a cheer as Oro made another lap around the grove, "Woohoo!"

He chased after us, leaping for joy and whooping the whole while. I peered out from underneath the blanket and waved my paw at my partner, "It's amazing! Blue, it's really comfy!"

"That's great!" Blue shouted back. He sped up his jog and began to trot alongside Oro. I watched as he patted the Trevenant's trunk, stopping his stampede and taking us to a stop.

_Groar!_ Oro let out a cheerful roar and waved his leafy arms in the air. Blue let out a loud laugh and mimicked his action, swinging his arms in the air. Brin and I were both hugging each other as we giggled from the fun and excitement, while Mismagius had her cloak wrapped around us.

"All we need to do now is load the cargo, and we're ready to go!" Blue hollered.

"The cargo?" I asked, tilting my head to the side, "What cargo?"

Blue shook his head, smirking. He jabbed a paw at Oro and said, "You got them, right Oro?"

_Groar!_

At that, both Oro and Blue disappeared behind the caravan. Brin and I glanced at each other, then stuck our heads out under the blanket. When we opened our eyes, our jaws fell wide open out of surprise.

Blue and Oro were both carrying something long and bushy over to the caravan. The two of us quickly ducked our heads back inside the blanket as a large bundle of leaves came looming into our faces. We spun around to the side, curious as to what the two boys were doing.

"Incoming!" Blue shouted, giving Brin and I just enough time to duck back inside the safety of the tent. And for good reason too, since whatever it was they were carrying was just hurled on top of the caravan. Brin and I both grabbed onto each other as the cart began to lurch and wobble from the sudden added weight.

"I – is that a tree?" I said, prodding the leafy cargo with my paw. As I was inspecting it, a sudden yellow blur came zooming past me. A startled cry left my mouth as I almost tumbled off the caravan.

"Oh my, isn't that one of Brin's Mago trees?" I heard Mismagius say. A little dazed, I pulled myself together and shook my head. In front of me, with her head half – buried in the fronds, was a cheerful Brin. Her arms were thrown around the tree's branches, giving it a tight hug filled with affection.

"That's right," Blue leaned over the side of the caravan and pointed at the bushy tree, "Oro and I picked out the least damaged tree of the four." His lips pulled up into a grin as he shrugged, "If she was going to leave the forest, then why not bring a souvenir?"

Brin spun around and clapped her hands together; her eyes were glittering with happiness as she spoke silent thanks over and over again to Blue. My partner just waved his paw in the air, brushing off her gratitude and shook his head.

"If you're going to thank anyone, thank Oro." He pointed his paw at the Trevenant standing at his side, "He was the one who found it and cleaned off all the charred portions. All I did was come up with the idea. Again."

All eyes fell on Oro, who turned away and scratched his face with his claw. I giggled. It was funny to see such a big, scary Pokémon look so bashful. In fact, I would say that it looked a little cute!

"Now then!" Blue said as he clapped his paws together, "The three of you sit tight now. We're about to set off!"

"Wait, you're gonna tug the caravan too?"

"Of course!" Blue shot me a grin before he disappeared behind the tree with a wave of his paw, "It's the least I can do after getting healed by Brin."


	27. Lead the way, grumbly!

**•   
Chapter 25**

**"Lead the way, grumbly!"**

* * *

Loading up the caravan was a laborious process. It was partly because there was just so much stuff inside of Mismagius and Brin's home. We had to carry out stacks of books, furniture like chairs and tables, and even that big cauldron that Mismagius used to make soup with. In all honesty, I'm rather surprised that the caravan the boys built managed to support all this weight we're loading on it!

"This should be the last one," Blue announced, holding onto a black pumpkin by its stem, "it looks like it's going to be a little crowded in there..."

He juggled the pumpkin around in his paws before glancing around the pile, trying to find a suitable place to jam it in. Grinning, he leaned against the caravan and added, "Maybe we should've made it a little bigger, huh Oro?"

_Groar..._ Oro grumbled and scratched his cheek with his claw. He stared at the massive mish – mash of random objects and stuff lying atop of his caravan, then back at the pumpkin in Blue's paws. He shook his head in apparent disapproval and grumbled again, g_roar._

"What are you griping about?" Blue said, leaning his elbow against the pile.

"He's saying: If you made it any bigger, then you wouldn't be able to fit it through the forest entrance."

Everyone looked up at Mismagius, who was floating high above the pile. Giggling, she rested herself on top of her favorite rocking chair, which had somehow ended up at the summit of the mountain. The entire pile of objects began to creak and wobble ominously when Mismagius placed herself on it, making Brin and I both gulp out of worry.

"H – hey..." I mumbled, backing away from the precarious situation. I glanced toward Brin and pointed at the creaking caravan, "maybe we should think about leaving some stuff behind? I mean... isn't this dangerous?"

Brin nodded in agreement. She looked up at her mother and waved her hand in the air. I turned my head toward the boys while Brin was calling Mismagius over. Blue and Oro looked like they were arguing over something, with Oro holding onto that black pumpkin from earlier, and Blue trying to take it back from him.

A thought ran through my mind as I watched the two of them them squabble over the pumpkin. Blue and Oro were the ones who were going to be pulling the caravan, weren't they? Even with Blue's leg healed by Brin's powers, I wouldn't want him to be pulling something so dangerous right from the get go.

"Hm..." I was snapped out of my worry – filled reverie by Mismagius' humming. Turning around, I saw her floating beside me with a pensive look on her face, "you have a point." She turned around to look at the pile again, smiling, "Blue and Oro would have their work cut out for them if they had to lug around all this for the entire trip. It would be tiring, hm?"

"T – tiring, yes," I shook my head and pointed at the boys with my paw, "The trip between the forest and Treasure Town isn't that far, but it's still quite a distance." I rubbed my cheek with my paw and mulled it over, "If I remember correctly, it took me and Blue a good portion of the noontime to get through the plains."

"My, I didn't think the town was that close!" Mismagius chuckled, "If that's the case, then perhaps we needn't lighten the loadx. Perhaps we can add even more!"

"Mismagius!"

A hearty laugh came from the cloaked Pokémon as she fluffed my head, "It was but a joke, Fée. Don't worry." She floated up toward the giant pile and held out her cloak. A faint purple glow began to emanate out from her body, spreading toward the cargo on top of the caravan. Soon, the entire mountain was aglow with purple, shining like a great beacon.

"Hey, what's going on?" Blue called out to us, "What are you doing?"

"Just cleaning up a few things," Mismagius replied. She raised up her cloak and, with a hearty cackle, she lifted up the entire pile into the air.

"A – aaah!" I shouted out of utter shock as I saw a massive jumble of books, chairs and more hover over my head like a great, wooden boulder. I rushed out from underneath the shadow of the pile along with Brin, and dived out of the way as Mismagius lowered it onto the ground.

_Flumph!_

A wall of air and dust blew out from the pile's landing as it touched the grass, sending a ton of silt into everyone's faces. Coughing, I rubbed the grime out of my face and blinked away the tears that were threatening to drip out of my eyes.

"My apologies for that, everyone," I heard Mismagius speak out from behind the cloud of dust, "I tried to lower it as gently as I could, but it's been a while since I've lifted something this heavy," She let out an exhausted sigh and flew through the smokescreen.

"Hum," I turned around and saw Blue juggling the pumpkin in his paws, "so then, what do you want to bring with you to Treasure Town?"

He tossed the pumpkin high up into the air and tried to catch it as it fell. But, before Blue's paw even reached the vegetable, Oro's claw sailed over Blue's head and snatched it away. Blue growled at Oro and tried to grab the pumpkin back, but the tall Trevenant just raised his arm high and kept it out of Blue's reach.

"Hm," Mismagius murmured as she and Brin both moved over toward the pile. Mismagius covered her face with her cloak and turned to her daughter, "well then, what do you think we should bring, Brin?"

Brin stared into the pile of books, chairs and so on and so forth. She spent a few seconds circling around the mountain, looking around and poking at stuff. After a moment, she stopped and clapped her hands together. Brin turned around to Mismagius and pointed at something sticking out of the pile.

"I see. I would've been surprised if you didn't want to bring that with you, my dear." Chuckling, Mismagius raised up her cloak and covered herself in a purple glow once more. The inside of the pile began to radiate with light as Mismagius moved several objects out of the way to make a sizable hole in the side.

Brin nodded at Mismagius and rushed up to the pile. She stood in front of the hole and reached her arm inside. A few moments later, Brin made a happy cry and withdrew from the pile. With her hand held up high, she made a triumphant huff and displayed her treasure.

"A book?"

Feeling a little curious, I wandered over to Brin and stared at the object that Brin was holding. It was a book that was just barely larger than her own hand. With a cover the color of grass, and a bookmark shaped like a leaf sticking out of the top, I thought it was rather eye catching. I wanted to see what was inside it, but right as I was about to ask Brin, Mismagius' voice interrupted me.

"Oh Brin, how about we bring this as welll?" We both turned toward Mismagius. The cloaked Pokémon was smirking as she twirled dust – covered twig before her. A streak of red appeared on Brin's face when she caught sight of that twig.

"You used to love this twig a lot when you were but a little Fennekin, remember?"

One of Brin's arms shot forward, trying to snatch the twig out of the air. But Mismagius kept moving it out of the way, punctuating every dodge with a playful giggle. I watched the dusty twig flutter and dance around in the air while Brin continued to pounce after it. Mismagius giggled and flung the twig high up into the air, letting it fly toward the canopy before falling down into Brin's outstretched hand.

Brin let out a sigh of relief as she held the twig in her hand. All of a sudden, she yelled and hurled the twig away. The gray twig sailed through the air for a brief moment before it fell into the ravine that separated the forest from their home. A quiet _splish_ sound rang out as the twig dropped into the river below.

"What was that?" I asked, surprised by Brin's sudden furor. Mismagius giggled and floated over to the Braixen, who was panting from exertion.

"Brin used to have a little habit when she was a little girl, you see." Mismagius explained, wrapping her cloak around Brin's heaving form, resting her chin atop her daughter's head, "Back then, she would never stop gnawing on that twig. Day in and day out, I would find her nibbling away at that thing for hours on end."

Brin made an annoyed grumble as she tried to hide her reddening face behind her book, which only elicited another amused giggle from her mother.

"Don't you remember, Brin?" Mismagius teased as she tickled Brin's cheek, "I had to try and pluck that twig out of your mouth just so you would eat dinner." She sighed and smiled, "I was so happy when you finally grew out of that phase. It was a breath of a relief for me."

"Mn..." Brin bit down on Mismagius' cloak and grumbled. The cloaked Pokémon just smiled and kissed the top of Brin's head, letting the Braixen chew on the hem of her cloak for a bit as Mismagius embraced her daughter.

"I see..." My voice trailed off as I watched the two of them hug each other. A strange, cold sensation appeared in the pit of my stomach. It was so uncomfortable and painful that I had to look away from them. I wrapped my paws around my belly, trying to force the pain away.

"Fée? Is something the matter?"

Mismagius and Brin were both looking at me with worried looks on their faces. Panicking, I quickly shook my head and stood up straight. While that icy feeling was still rumbling around inside me, I ignored it and tried to look as normal as possible.

"No, I'm fine," I said, putting a smile on my face, "I was just wondering if we'll be leaving soon. That's all."

Mismagius separated herself from Brin and rubbed the bottom of her face with her cloak. Her eyes were still trained on me, watching me with a suspicious gleam. I had a feeling that she might've been trying to look into my thoughts, so I hurried and tried to think of inconsequential things. Like... food. Homemade lunches, steaming pots, and tasty berries...

"Hm..." Mismagius' eyes left me after a second of silence, making me sigh quietly out of relief. She turned toward Brin and said, "Are there anything else you'd like to bring with you, my dear?"

Brin glanced over to the giant pile of stuff and shook her head. She held up the grass – green book in her arms and smiled.

"Alright," Mismagius' face crinkled into a smile as she ruffled the fur on top of Brin's head, "let's go tell those two boys to knock it off before they end up throwing themselves into the ravine."

As if right on cue, a loud _splash_ing noise exploded out from behind me, followed by the voice of my partner screaming "_aaagh!_" Panicking, I spun myself around and saw Oro standing next to the edge of the ravine. The Trevenant's body was covered in punch – marks and bruises, but he had the pumpkin in his claws held high up above his head in a victory pose. Meanwhile, Blue was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh, I suppose we're too late." Mismagius cackled while Brin and I made simultaneous gasps and rushed over to the edge of the ravine.

"Blue!" I stuck my head over the cliff and looked down. Much to my relief, the ravine wasn't deep at all. Blue was lying in shallow river below, looking no worse for the wear. Sighing, I waved my paw over the edge and shouted, "Are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

Blue stood up and shook some water off his fur before shouting back, "I'm fine, no need to worry! I'm just a little wet, that's all." He folded his arms and frowned, "There's a bit of a problem though."

"A problem? What is it?"

He pressed his paws against the walls of the ravine, "I don't think I can get back up from here," I watched as Blue tried to clamber up the sides of the cliff. He made halfway up the wall before he lost his grip and fell back into the river.

"Pbbt!" Blue spat some water out of his mouth and coughed, "Those walls are way too smooth. I can't get a grip at all!"

He tried to leap onto the wall again, but the same result happened. He slid off the cliff and got himself wet again from hitting the water.

Turning around, I looked at Mismagius and said, "What do we do? We can't leave Blue down there!"

"There's no need to worry, my dear," Mismagius giggled and waved her cloak in the air, "Blue's actually right where we need to be."

"Eh?"

Mismagius pointed her cloak at Oro and said, "Oro, please."

_Groar!_

With his mighty arms, Oro grabbed onto the caravan and lifted it high above his head. I stared at the Trevenant for a moment, then back at Blue below the ravine. What was he planning to do? Was he going to use the caravan as a sort of ladder for Blue? Or maybe he was going to use it as a ramp so Blue can run back up!

_Groar!_

My guesses were completely wrong. Instead of using it as a ladder or a ramp, Oro hurled the caravan into air.

"Aaah!" I heard Blue howl in horror as the caravan came careening down the ravine. The sound of water splashing erupted from below as the wooden contraption hit the water.

"T – that was dangerous!" I cried out, spinning around to glare Oro, "You could've hurt him!"

_Groar..._ Oro scratched his cheek with his claw and dipped his head down. He held that black pumpkin in front of his body, looking a little despondent.

"I'm fine! Don't worry!" I spun around at the sound of my friend's voice. I rushed over to the edge of the ravine and looked down at the river below. Blue was climbing onto the caravan – well, it's more like a raft now – and sat himself beside Brin's Mago tree. He looked up and waved at me.

"Actually, this seems like a good idea!" Blue pointed at the direction the river was flowing, and added, "It looks like the river keeps flowing for a while. We can just ride the river out until we reach the fields outside!"

I glanced back at Mismagius, who was covering her face in an effort to conceal her giggles.

"Did you plan that?" I asked, feeling a little curious.

"Well, my dear Fée," Mismagius floated over to me and tapped my forehead with her cloak, "there's really no other way one can leave the forest with such a large caravan. The entrance you and your partner used to come in... it's a little small, wouldn't you say?"

"Erm..." I thought back to that secret entrance that Blue and I found yesterday. On hindsight, it _was_ a little cramped. It definitely wouldn't have been able to let a caravan of this size pass through. A sheepish giggle left my mouth as I scratched my cheek with my paw, "Ehe..."

"Hey, are you all coming down or what?"

"My, we shouldn't keep him waiting, hm?" Mismagius smiled as she waved her cloak at Oro, "Now then, why don't you put away that pumpkin and help the girls down, Oro?"

_Groar..._ Oro took the pumpkin and placed it on top of his head, where it stayed put between his two large horns. Then, he reached his arms out toward Brin and I. Brin smiled and sat down on the palm of his wooden claw, while I did the same on the other. To my surprise, it was much comfier than I expected. I'll keep that to myself though.

Once he was sure that we were safe and secure on his claws, Oro walked over to the edge of the ravine and looked down. Mismagius and Blue were already sitting on top of the caravan, chit – chatting about something I couldn't hear. For a moment, I wondered how Oro was going to climb down the steep sides of the ravine.

_Groar!_

I didn't need to think about it for very long. Oro let out an earsplitting roar and hurled himself into the air with surprising agility.

"Eeek!" I screamed as I clung tight against his claw. I squeezed my eyes shut and focused on staying on Oro's claw. I feared what might happen if I slipped off at any point. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Brin cheering and laughing with a big smile on her face.

_Splash!_

Oro landed into the river, roots – first. I felt water drip off my fur as I opened my eyes. Both Brin and I were drenched with water again. Sighing, I let go of Oro's claw and began to paw off the water on my face as he trudged over to the caravan.

"That was quite spectacular," Mismagius remarked as Oro deposited Brin and I onto the caravan. The yellow blanket that was tied on top of the caravan loosened and fluttered down into Blue's arms. With a smile, Mismagius patted Blue's shoulder and said, "why don't you dry them off, Blue? Oro will take care of moving the caravan for now."

"Sure," grinning, Blue took the blanket and nodded. He stood up on the caravan and carefully inched his way over to the soggy Brin and I.

I felt the warm blanket wrap around me as Blue began to scrub the water off me again. The caravan underneath me began to lurch and wobble while he did so. I assumed that it was because Oro was moving it down the river, taking us down the stream and back to the world outside. As my partner continued to fluff up my fur, I thought back to everything that happened since I started this adventure.

A smile came onto my face. Not only did we succeed in finding the legendary Panacea, but we also made a bunch of new friends. My partner, Blue's leg was fully cured, and he looked healthier than ever. Brin, Mismagius and Oro were all going to return to Treasure Town with us. And... I also managed to face my fears a little.

Fighting off Zubat and Koffing... even though I ended up passing the baton over to Blue in the end, I feel that I've gotten stronger a bit. Even if it was just a little, it was something I felt that I could be proud of. That cold image of me crying on that beach... I could feel it fading away inside my mind, little by little.

Through the yellow fluffy blanket, I could make out the faint outline of my partner's face. As of right now, he's much stronger than I am. He was brave, he was powerful, but he is a little bit of an idiot too. At the same time though... I wouldn't want it any other way. In my mind, I could see him standing far, far ahead of me. Waiting for me to reach him.

"I'm going to be just as strong as you, Blue," I murmured through the blanket, "I'm going to get stronger... braver, just like you are."

"Hm?" Blue pulled the blanket away from my face and looked at me, "Did you say something, Fée?"

I just grinned.

* * *

The river that connected the Forlorn Forest to the outside was, to my surprise, rather short. We drifted down the stream for several minutes before we reached the boundary between the rolling hills outside and the sea of trees behind. The river had cut across the back of the mountain range, traveling through an almost secret entrance – like valley before depositing us into a shallow lake at the foot of a cliff.

Once we were out into the vast expanse of the frontier, Oro lifted the caravan out of the lake and placed it onto the grassy fields. Then, both Blue and Oro took a hold of the caravan from the front and began to pull it like a pair of odd – looking Tauros. The two of them seemed to be locked into some sort of competition, where they kept fighting each other to see who can pull the caravan harder than the other.

Of course, Oro kept winning this odd duel through the virtue of him being much larger than my partner. Any time Blue wanted to out – play Oro, the Trevenant would just lift the caravan up and pull Blue off the ground with it.

"That's unfair!" Blue would shout while he kicked his legs around in the air, "You wouldn't be able to do this if I was taller!"

_Groar!_

All the while their rivalry was going on, Mismagius, Brin and I were sitting in the back of the caravan, watching and giggling at their uneven battles.

"My, they do seem like good friends now, don't they?" Mismagius mused as she watched Oro lift a snarling Blue off the ground again, "It's nice to see Oro play with somebody his own age."

"His own age?" I echoed, surprised, "How old is Oro? I assumed that he was a lot older than Blue and I."

"Oh no," Mismagius shook her head and smiled at me, "don't you remember what I told you yesterday? When Brin and I arrived at the forest, he was but a young child then. I'd even say that Oro might be younger than Brin, but the specifics are foggy."

I turned toward Brin, who was eagerly looking around at all sights moving past the caravan "Brin, how old are you?"

Brin turned around, her face shining bright with excitement and glee. She rubbed her chin with her hand and thought about it for a moment. However, a few seconds of thought later, she shook her head and shrugged. Then, she lifted her hand and pointed at me with her head tilted to the side.

"I... actually don't know my exact age either," I said with a sheepish grin on my face, "all I know is that I've lived in Treasure Town for most of my life."

"That's odd," Mismagius murmured, "what about your parents, Fée?"

"My... parents?"

For as long as I could remember, I was a resident of Treasure Town. I lived in that magical place, surrounded by excitement and dreams. I remember... Mr. Mime's library was a place full of knowledge and adventure. I could... spend the entire day away just reading about heroes and explorers, of places out there in the world, and of the history of the frontier.

I've lived in Treasure Town for most of my life, that much is true. But... my memory only extends as far back as that. For as long as I could remember, I spent a lot of my time practically living inside of Mr. Mime's library. It was... lonely, and a little dull.

That's why I wanted to become an explorer. That's why I wanted to go out and see the vast, wide world beyond the walls of the town with my own eyes.

I shook my head and touched the ribbon on my ear. The little gem embedded on my Explorer's Badge felt cool and smooth as I rubbed it with my paw.

This was my dream, after all. I wanted to become an explorer. I wanted to become an explorer so I could go out... so I could go and find...

"I – I'm sorry Fée," all of a sudden, Mismagius' voice cut through my thoughts, "I didn't mean to bring up anything difficult for you, my dear."

She reached out with her cloak and touched my cheek. As she rubbed my face, I realized that there was a smattering of wetness below my eyes. I tried to reach up with my paws, to touch the tears sliding down my fur. But Mismagius pushed them away and continued to dab at my cheeks with her cloak.

"W – what do you mean?" Shaking my head, I pushed Mismagius' cloak away from my face and rubbed away at my wet cheeks with my paws. Then, I screwed my face up into a smile and said in a light voice, "I – I'm fine. Really, I am!"

I reached up with my paws and pointed at my teary eyes. My vision was still a little wobbly, but that was because of the dust, of course!

"I think I just got some dust just got into my eyes, that's all. See?"

"Fée."

All of a sudden, a wave of purple covered up my sight. I opened my mouth to cry out in surprise, but my voice was muffled by Mismagius' cloak. She had wrapped herself around me, hugging me tight.

"Mismagius?" I was nonplussed by her sudden hug, and I didn't know what to think. I reached out with my paws and tried to wriggle out of her grasp, but she just hugged me even tighter.

"It's alright, my dear," I heard her whisper into my ear, "I apologize for bringing it up. It must've been hard for you, Fée..."

"What are you talking about, Mismagius?" I replied, a little startled by her sudden change in demeanor, "I'm... I'm fine, there's nothing you need to be sorry about."

"Hush," Mismagius murmured, "just rest for now, my dear..."

I felt a little embarrassed having Mismagius hold onto me like this. My mind wanted her to let go of me. But... as I continued to be embraced by her, I could feel a strange... almost familiar warmth flooding through my body. It was relaxing... and it made me want to just fall asleep. Before I even knew it, my eyes had closed and my consciousness was drifting away...

* * *

I had a little dream.

Once again, I returned to that solitary snowfield. Like before, I could see nothing else around me but the snow and the night sky above. I was standing in the middle of an endless sea of white.

Like little jewels sparkling in the sky, snowflakes drifted down from the stars above. Surrounded by these beautiful white gems, I wandered across the snowfield. I didn't have a destination, nor did I know where I was heading toward. If there was one thing I was looking for here, it would be that.

A tiny pinprick of color was just barely visible in the distance. A spike of green marring the otherwise pristine canvas of white. I turned toward it, recognizing what that green beacon must be. After all, what else was there in this snowy world?

Moments later, I found myself standing at the foot of a ginormous tree. Has it grown since the last time I saw it? Smiling, I patted the tree's thick trunk with my paw and looked up into its snow – covered branches.

A lonely, forgotten tree...

I took my paw off the tree and sat down in the snow. My tail and my behind shuddered as I touched the icy ground, but I ignored it. I stared at the tree, watching it lean and sway above me as more and more snow piled on top of it.

"Hello." My voice echoed as it traveled through the empty snowfield. A small clump of snow spilled off the branches of the tree, landing beside me as if it was responding to me. I giggled and looked at the pile of snow beside me. There was something shining inside of it, drawing out my curiosity.

I reached out to it with my paws and started digging out whatever that shiny thing could be from the snow. After a few seconds of cold labor, I unearthed it. After dusting off the icy powder from my fur, I picked it up and held it close to my face.

It was a small, rustic – looking locket on a chain. At first, I thought it was Mismagius and Brin's locket. But... it wasn't the same as theirs. Instead of being shaped like a heart, the locket had the shape of a five – pointed star. The color wasn't silver either – instead, it was a dull gray and had several patches of rust covering it.

I glanced up at the tree, giving it a questioning look. Was I expecting a response out of it? Maybe... perhaps. But either way, it didn't speak a word back to me. It simply stayed where it was, silently swaying in the cold breeze.

I put the locket in my mouth and walked over to the foot of the tree. It was much larger than before, and had a nice little crook in between its roots for me to snuggle into. Once I was nice and cozy beside the tree, I sat down and held the locket back up into the air. It gleamed with a dim glow as it reflected the drifting snowflakes around me. I noticed a tiny button protruding from the top of the locket, sticking out of the uppermost point of the star.

I wanted to press that button. But, as I hovered my paw over it, a cloying feeling of hesitation swirled around my heart. My paw was frozen in place, unmoving. Did I want to know what was inside this locket? What if what was inside... was something I didn't want to see? Something that I didn't want to know about?

Minutes passed me by as I continued to sit here with my paw staying a scant few inches above this button. I wanted to press it, and yet...

And yet...

* * *

The sounds of activity roused me from my sleep. All around me, I could hear the sound of Pokémon talking, as well as several familiar voices speaking nearby. Yawning wide, I stretched out my legs and arched my back up. I shook my head, trying to fling away any lingering drowsiness left inside my mind.

Through my groggy eyes, I could see the faint, blurry outlines of other Pokémon wandering around me. I yawned again and rubbed the sleep off my eyes with my paw.

"Hey, you're finally awake! How was your sleep?"

As I closed my mouth, I saw a blue and black – colored blob wobbling around in front of me. A lazy grin wormed its way onto my face as I pushed my belly off the caravan and stood up. The blurry colors around me were beginning to sharpen, and my drowsiness was fading away. Another lazy yawn passed through my mouth before I felt awake enough to speak.

"Mmgh..." I grumbled, rubbing my face with my paw, "Blue is that you? Where are we now?"

"You snoozed away the entire trip, sleepyhead," Blue said, patting my head, "we're back at Treasure Town already."

I felt his paws wrap around my side as he picked me up and took me off the caravan. As he put me back down on the ground, I straightened out my ears and looked around. A large, wooden gate loomed up behind me, while a bunch of sandy – colored, box – shaped buildings stretched out into the distance. The ground was soft, and marked with innumerable footprints.

Looking up, I caught sight of a flock of Pidgey and Taillow swooping through the skies, while a couple of lazy Drifloon surrounding a Drifblim drifted by overhead. While a bunch of other Pokémon were walking around us. From the ubiquitous herds of Tauros and Bouffalant roaming the streets, to the gangs of Mankey swinging around from building to building.

"We're back...!"

Without a doubt, this was my beloved hometown of Treasure Town. The lazy smile on my face grew into a beaming grin as I ran up to Blue and threw my paws out my paws toward him.

"We're back!" I repeated in a louder, cheerier voice this time, "We're home!"

Blue made a muffled, coughing noise as I tackled right into his gut. His entire upper body bent forward, and his chin clashed against the top of my head. In order to keep himself from falling backward onto the ground, he wrapped his arms around my head to try and stabilize himself.

"Geh..." Blue groaned as he tapped his paw against the back of my head, "F – Fée... I know you're happy to be back home, but you didn't need to tackle me..."

"Ehe!" Feeling mischievous, I nuzzled my smiling face deeper into his chest. I heard his mouth let out a sigh from somewhere above me as he rested his paw on my head.

I extricated myself from my partner feeling rather bubbly and cheery. After grooming the ruffled fur on my face for a moment, I looked around me again. Other than Blue, who was still reeling from my attack, I didn't see Brin, Mismagius or Oro anywhere. The caravan was still here, along with Brin's Mago tree, so they can't be too far away.

I stood up on my hind legs, peering over the heads of all the Pokémon wandering around us. To my relief, it didn't take long for me to locate them. After all, all I had to do was keep an eye out for the tallest member of their family. I gestured to Blue for him to follow me, and the two of us weaved through the crowd and made our way over to our new friends.

"...and that's the gist of it! Welcome to Treasure Town! I hope you enjoy your stay, miss... err Mismagius."

"You're too kind. Just Mismagius will do. Thank you, Electrode. Chinchou."

Mismagius waved goodbye to the gatekeeper duo while Brin and Oro both gave respectful bows. Electrode and Chinchou waved back (well, Chinchou did anyway), before they retreated back inside the gatehouse. Once the door closed behind them, Mismagius let out a loud sigh and relaxed her uptight posture. She turned around, her face wearing a bored – looking expression, and shook her head.

"My, that was quite a dull experience," she muttered, shaking her cloak at Brin and Oro, "but, at least we know where that dratted old Duskull is living now. Are you looking forward to seeing that old curmudgeon again after all this time?"

Brin clapped her hands together and bounced on the tip of her feet, looking excited. Meanwhile, Oro seemed to be preoccupied with something in his claws, though he did give Mismagius a little nod. I wandered over to their group and sat down before the cloaked Pokémon.

"Oh!" Mismagius turned and smiled at me, "Good to see you're awake, Fée. Did you have a good nap?"

She hovered over to me and rubbed me on the head with her cloak.

"Yes I did, thank you." I replied, returning her smile. I looked past Mismagius and at the door to the gatehouse behind her, "What were you asking the gatekeepers about, Mismagius?"

"I was simply asking them for directions," Mismagius answered, "I wanted to know where I could find Duskull here in this bustling Combee hive of a city."

"Duskull?" I raised up my paw and smiled, "If you wanted to, Blue and I could've just taken you to the Phantom Patisserie ourselves."

Mismagius shook her head and floated over to Brin's side. She took a hold of Brin's hand with her cloak and raised it, "Oh no. If I bothered you two to take us all the way to the other side of town, how would you be able to find the time to give my daughter a nice tour of the place? Brin was really looking forward to it too."

Brin held her mother's cloak and hid her face behind it as she stared at Blue and I. Mismagius chuckled and withdrew her cloak, revealing her daughter's red face. She floated over to Oro's side, and sat down on his shoulder.

"Oro and I will head toward the Patisserie first, with the caravan, of course." Mismagius explained, "As for Brin, I'm leaving her in your care for the time being." She pointed her cloak at the road toward the Main Plaza, "Didn't you say that there was a magnificent library before? Brin is very excited about seeing that, Fée."

"Mr. Mime's Library...!" I grinned at Brin and nodded, "Of course! I'll definitely take you there, Brin! You'll love it!"

I reached out my paw to Brin, who took it and walked over to stand beside Blue and I. Mismagius smiled at us and nodded, before turning to Oro.

"Alright then, shall we be off?" She said, "We mustn't keep that old, bread – obsessed coot waiting. If we dawdle any longer, I'm afraid we might just find a cloak and some crumbs awaiting us!"

_Groar!_

Oro raised up his arms and let loose a loud howl into the air, shocking and startling all the passerby. Mismagius cackled and patted the Trevenant's head as he stomped over to the front of the caravan. With his two mighty claws, he lifted up the wooden cart as if it weighed nothing at all. The sight of a large tree pulling a makeshift caravan drew the looks of several Pokémon, even eliciting a few admiring whistles from the Tauros and Bouffalant.

"Ah, one more thing before we leave," Mismagius turned around and beckoned me over. Curious, I wandered over to Mismagius. She floated down from Oro's shoulder and hovered in front of me.

"What is it, Mismagius?" I asked, confused.

"Shh..." Mismagius closed her eyes and pressed her cloak against my ruff. Her mouth opened and closed as if she was speaking, but no sound entered my ears. However... I could hear her voice loud and clear inside my mind.

'Fée.' Mismagius said, 'Feel free to visit me anytime you wish. While I cannot replace what you've lost, I would be more than happy to act as a substitute'

She wrapped her cloak around me once more, giving me a warm hug.

'Please, let me dote on you as I do with Brin every once in a while. It's the least I can do for you after all the help you provided Brin.'

"Mismagius..." I bowed my head down and smiled, "...thank you."

Mismagius gripped me tight for a second before she let me go. The cloaked Pokémon then turned to look at Blue.

"Blue," Mismagius said, shaking her cloak him, "be sure to take care of yourself. As strong and brave as you are, remember that your bravery means nothing if you throw yourself away in a fit of foolishness, my dear."

Blue's right arm moved down to his leg as he mulled over Mismagius' words. After a moment, he looked up at her and nodded. Grinning, he grasped her cloak and said, "I understand, Mismagius. Thank you."

"I hope you do," the cloaked Pokémon said, cackling, "I would like to see my future son in good health, rather than in tatters!"

"P – please..." Blue covered his face with his paw, shaking his head. Looking pleased with herself, Mismagius floated back onto Oro's shoulder and waved her cloak at us.

"Well then, take care!" She shouted, "Brin, be sure to tell me everything you experienced today. I'll be waiting at our new home for you to return later."

Brin, Blue and I all waved goodbye to Mismagius and Oro as they trundled away with the caravan. Once the two of them vanished into the crowd, Brin turned toward us and clapped her hands together. Her eyes were practically sparkling with excitement, and she kept bouncing up and down on her feet. Blue and I glanced at each other and shared a chuckle.

"Alright Brin," I took a step forward and turned around with my paw raised high, "first, we'll head to Wigglytuff's Guild to report in our success to the guildmaster, and then we can go on a tour of the tow–"

_Gurgle..._

My face burned white hot as my empty stomach decided to make its presence known. My paw drifted back down to the ground as I smiled sheepishly at my friends. A few stifled giggles were coming from behind their hands as they smiled back at me.

"Maybe we should grab a bite to each first," Blue said as he patted my head, "I'm sure the guild can wait."

"Ehe..." I pawed my cheek and grinned at my companions, "alright."

* * *

The sound of running water welcomed us as we entered the Main Plaza. Like always, the wide, circular plaza was filled with all sorts of Pokémon admiring, wandering around, or just hanging out by the great stone fountain situated in the center. Seeing crowds like this all around town was a familiar sight for me by now, but for Brin, it must've been quite an experience!

The Braixen had her arms wrapped tight around her chest, hugging her little green book as she stared all around the crowded plaza. She trembled with excitement as her eyes flitted from Pokémon to Pokémon, from building to building.

"Hehe..." I looked up at her and smiled, "are you surprised by all the Pokémon walking around, Brin?"

Instead of answering me, Brin separated herself from us and rushed ahead into the plaza. She stopped before the Founder's Fountain and turned around as Blue and I caught up with her. Smiling wide, Brin stood up on her tiptoes and pointed up at the statues looming overhead. More specifically, she was pointing at the statue of the Great Dusknoir.

"That guy again..." Blue let out a loud sigh as he folded his arms in front of his chest. "Don't tell me you're interested in this Dusknoir guy too, Brin."

Brin didn't seem to notice Blue's rude disdain for the Great Dusknoir, and gave him a fervent nod. I sent a scathing glare at Blue as he made another exasperated groan. Ignoring my grumbling partner, I walked up beside Brin and admired the statue along with her.

"Brin," I said, brushing Blue aside, "do you want to hear the origins of this fountain?"

She nodded at me, her face gleaming with anticipation. I giggled and leaned over the edge of the fountain pool, trailing my paw around in the cool water.

"Back during the early days of exploring the frontier," I started, "the Founders of Treasure Town – that's them up there, by the way – ran into all sorts of troubles while they were trying to colonize this plateau that we're standing on."

I dropped my voice to a scary, grave tone as I continued, "While they were in the middle of expanding their rest stop into an actual town, the entire settlement was laid siege by a huge group of dastardly Pokémon that were seeking to rob the Founders and their companions."

Brin gasped and clapped her hands over her mouth.

"For twenty seven whole days, the Founders fought against the horde of villains nonstop to protect their companions from being harmed." I pointed at the big statue of Golurk towering over the rest, "They say that Golurk and Dusknoir singlehandedly held the enemies off for three days all on their own so everyone else could rest."

Brin stared at me with a stunned look on her face. I grinned and clapped my paws together before finishing my story, "It's because of the Founders' tenacity and bravery that the grateful Pokémon of Treasure Town decided to sculpt and erect this monument for all four of them. Torkoal, Sigilyph, Golurk and – of course – the Great Dusknoir!"

"That's... actually really impressive."

I turned around and saw Blue staring up at the statues along with us. Puffing out my chest, I put on a proud smirk on my face and poked him in the chest.

"See?" I said, "I told you that the Great Dusknoir is somebody to be amazed by! And you were all 'oh he's just a guy who writes books!' What do you think of him now –bweh!"

All of a sudden, Blue squeezed his paws over my cheeks, squeezing my face together and cutting off my tirade. I reached up to try and pry his paws off, but before I could even touch him, he started to rub his paws all over my face and head.

"H – hey!" I yelled through his fluffy attack, "T – that tickles! Stop! You're going to make my fur all messy again!"

A few harrowing seconds later, Blue finally relented and released my face. After that rubbing assault, I felt as though every single strand of fur on my face were sticking up like pins and needles! I rushed over to the side of the fountain pool and looked down at my reflection in the water.

"I look like a Ferroseed!" I groaned. Miffed, I spun around and sent a glare at the laughing Riolu, "Blue!"

"S – sorry..." Blue coughed and covered his mouth as he tried to hide his grin from me, "You were just getting so into it... it made me want to tease you a little... ha ha..."

"Hmph!" Huffing, I averted my eyes from him and puffed out my cheeks in indignation. Another pair of paws touched my face, making me flinch and turn around. However, instead of Blue's rough paws, it was Brin's delicate hands. The Braixen was brushing my messed up fur back into place, cleaning up all the chaos that Blue had wrought.

"At least someone's thankful for my history lesson," I muttered, sticking my tongue out at Blue, "hmph!"

"Ha... I'm sorry, Fée," Blue said with a grin. He placed his paw on my head, making me flinch in fear of another fluffy attack. But, instead of ruffling my fur, he just patted me like he always did. As I felt the warmth of his paw seep into my fur, I could feel my irritation fade away.

Jeez.

I pulled his paw down to my mouth and bit down on it. His eyes winced as I nibbled on his fingers, but I had a feeling he was just pretending. After I was satisfied with punishing him for his rudeness, I let go of his arm and gave him a smile, "There. Apology accepted."

While Blue was recovering from my bite of forgiveness, I glanced around the Main Plaza with a silly smile on my face. There were a lot of Pokémon wandering around, as usual for the place, but there was one part of the plaza that seemed to be noisier than the rest. I tilted my head to the side, confused. If I remembered correctly, that section of the plaza was reduced to rubble by the storm just a few days ago.

"That's strange." I wondered out loud, "I wonder what could be happening over there?"

I looked over to my companions. They seemed to have picked up on my curiosity too, and were staring at the large crowd over in the distance. We exchanged a quick nod between the three of us and began to make our way over to commotion.

* * *

We stood at the edge of the noisy crowd, trying to peer over the heads of all the Pokémon around to see what was going on. It was a futile attempt though, as the sheer amount of Pokémon in the crowd ahead of us obscured our vision like a black curtain over a window.

"Can you see anything?" I asked Blue, who was trying to edge his way past a rather obstinate Onix. The massive boulder – like Pokémon growled and whipped his tail at my partner, forcing him back. Grumbling, the Riolu folded his arms and shook his head at me.

Sighing out of defeat, I looked up into the air and saw some colorful confetti fluttering around in the sky. Odd, the confetti looked a lot larger than the confetti I'm used to. In fact... it looked a lot more like large, rectangular pieces of paper fluttering around than little scraps. I prodded Blue's paw to grab his attention and pointed up at it with my paw.

He nodded and waited for the paper to flutter closer to the ground. Then, as soon as it was close enough, his arm shot up and snagged it out of the air. With a triumphant look on his face, he held it up in front of him like a trophy and grinned at Brin and I. He then smoothed it out and put it on the ground between us.

I was right, it wasn't just confetti. In fact, it was an advertisement of some kind. The entire top portion of the parchment was dominated by a large and elegant logo, while the bottom half showed a group of ostentatious, flashy – looking Pokémon. Interested by the picture, I scanned my eyes across the large group of Pokémon below. All of them looked so fancy, so foreign to me.

Standing at the sides of the group were a pair of red and blue dragons wearing black bow – ties. The blue dragon had a rather serious expression on his face, while the red one looked a little more happy and carefree.

Next to the dragon pair was a large, rotund Pokémon covered in yellow fuzz. It appeared to be wearing what looked like a lily pad on his head as a hat. Beside the lily pad wearing Pokémon were a pair of pretty Bellossom. There were three more Pokémon standing in between all of them, but I didn't know who they were either.

Other than the Bellossom, I didn't recognize any of these Pokémon at all. Were they all immigrants from out of town? If so, then this advertisement must be about something brand new! I turned my eyes back up to the logo again, trying to decipher the fancy writing that they used for the design.

"S... Spinda's... Cafe?"

I've never heard of such a place before. Was it just built? If it took place right here, where the destroyed building was just a few days ago, then this Spinda Pokémon must be really impressive to have re-purposed it and rebuilt it in such a short time!

I glanced back down at the flier. There, standing at the very center of the picture, squeezed in between them all, was a short, cream – colored Pokémon with brown spots all over its face. Judging by its position, this must be Spinda.

"Hang on... I recognize that guy."

Blue's paw came into my vision as he pressed one of his fingers against the flier. At first, I thought he meant Spinda. But, as I looked down at his paw, I noticed that he was pointing at something far to the right of the group. A startling shock raced through my mind as my eyes fell upon what Blue was gesturing at.

There was one more Pokémon present on the flier. He was standing a little distance away from the others, so I must've accidentally passed by him when I was looking through the picture earlier.

"Isn't that...?"

However, that Pokémon...

"It has to be. Who else could it be?"

I had to agree with Blue. There was no one else in Treasure Town that looked like him. With his flashy looks and that smug grin... there was no mistake.

"Mn?"

Blue and I looked up from the flier. Brin was staring at us with a curious look on her face. She pointed at the Pokémon in question and tilted her head to the side.

"Brin," I spoke in a deep, grave voice as I placed my paw on the Sylveon's face, "if you ever see this Pokémon coming toward you, don't let him get close to you. Ever. alright?" A shudder ran through my spine as I recalled that embarrassing memory from yesterday.

Although she still looked a little confused, Brin nodded at me.

"So he's a part of this fancy group, huh?" Blue remarked, tapping the flier with the back of his paw. He stood back up and tried once more to peek over all the Pokémon present in the crowd, "I wonder if he's somewhere in the middle of this crowd."

"I wouldn't doubt it," I replied as I read the text written on the flier, "it says here that they're having some sort of grand opening event today."

"Grand opening?"

I nodded and rolled the flier up into a tube, "For their cafe, I think. Either way, I don't think we'll be able to take part in this event with the place so crowded."

"Maybe we can come by later," I suggested, pointing at the rowdy crowd ahead of us, "preferably when it's not as noisy and crowded."

_Gurgle..._

Blue prodded me in the side and grinned, "I think the noisiest thing here is your belly, Fée."

"J – jeez..." I bumped his paw away and stuck the flier into my pack, "Come on, let's go to the marketplace. We can go to Miltank's and get something to eat."

"Lead the way, grumbly!"

* * *

"Thank you for waiting dearies. Here's a scoop of cream for all of you."

We sat outside the restaurant, at a bench hidden from the sun underneath a large, colorful awning. Blue and Brin sat on either side of me, both of them holding large, cookie – colored cones in their paws. They held their cones in front of them, pointing the open end of it forward as Miltank came walking over with a large jug in her arms.

She withdrew a large ladle out of her apron pocket and used it to scoop out a generous helping of soft, white cream out of her jug. While humming a happy tune, Miltank dropped dollop after dollop of delicious cream into Blue and Brin's cones until it reached the tip – top of their heads. Once Miltank was satisfied with the amount of cream on their cones, she returned her ladle back to her apron and turned to me.

"That should be enough for you two," Miltank said as she returned her ladle to her apron pocket, "but if you'd like some more, feel free to come inside and ask!"

We gave our thanks to Miltank as she returned inside her store. While my two friends were enjoying their cold treats, I went and busied myself with a bowl of mixed berries in front of me. As much as I would've liked to partake in having some of Miltank's famous cookie – cone cream delights, I lacked the faculties to... well, hold one.

"What is this?" Blue sounded bewildered as he stared at his melting cone, "Do I eat this?"

I glanced over to Brin, who was also wearing a similar expression on her face. Her head continued to tilt left and right as she looked at her cream from every angle. She turned to look at Blue, who had somehow managed to coat his nose with a healthy layer of white. Both of them seemed like they were at a total loss on how to eat their food.

Giggling at their antics, I poked my partner in the cheek with a Cheri Berry. "Blue, you're not supposed to eat it like _that._" Giggling, I stuck out my tongue at him and pointed at it.

"You use your tongue to lick at the cream before it melts," I explained, "give it a try, you two."

I popped the berry into my mouth and chewed it as I watched the two of them stare at their cones, amused at the troubled looks on their faces. After a moment of thought, Brin opened her mouth and gave the cream a tentative lick.

As soon as her tongue touched the cream, her eyes brightened up like a pair of gleaming stars. She turned toward blue and waved her arm at him, smiling wide.

"It's good, huh?" I said to Brin, who nodded back at me.

"Alright, let's see then." Blue wiped the leftover cream off his nose and opened his mouth. However, instead of licking the treat, he bit down on it with his teeth as if it were a loaf of bread! As he swallowed that huge chunk of icy cream, I watched in amusement as his eyes bulged out of his head, and his grin turn into a grimace.

"Gyeh!" As expected, my partner howled in agony and clutched his forehead with his paw. "Ow, ow, ow!"

"Blue..." I stifled my mirth as I tried to make myself sound as exasperated as possible,"I thought I told you to lick it, not bite down on it."

"I – I thought I could eat it faster this way... egh..." his entire body shivered as he tried to ease the ache in his jaw, "It's like it just froze my teeth..."

Shaking my head, I looked down into my bowl and picked out a pudgy, yellow – skinned Aspear Berry. I brushed aside the paw he had on his jaw and shoved the berry into his mouth.

"Eat this," I said to his stunned – looking face, "you'll feel better if you chew on it for a bit."

With his mouth bulging like a Dedenne's after lunch, he nodded at me and began to munch on the Aspear. The pained look on his face faded away as the Aspear Berry's warming effect began to take a hold of his body, curing that painful brain freeze he was suffering from. Once he was done chewing on the berry, he gulped the rest of it down and sighed.

"Guh..." he grumbled, grimacing, "h – here... you can have the rest of it, Fée." He held his cream cone in front of me, "It tastes nice and all, but I think I p – prefer to eat something warmer."

"Can I?" I said, staring longingly at the melting ball of cream before me, "Are you sure? I mean... it's yours, after all."

"It's fine," he replied, "go ahead. I'll hold it for you."

"Well... if you insist!"

Feeling eager, I stuck out my tongue and took my very first taste of Miltank's famous cookie – cone cream delight. Even though the cold cream tasted the same as it was in a bowl, for some reason, having it in a cone made it all the more fun to eat. Not to mention... I thought it was a little nice of Blue to hold it for me... but I'll keep that to myself.

"Is it alright?" Blue asked, "Should I put it a little closer?"

A chunk of the cookie cone disappeared into my mouth as I bit my teeth into it. Savoring the sweet taste, I licked my lips and chewed it up while nodding at Blue. In return for letting me have his treat, I gave him a berry from my bowl. He took it and popped it into his mouth, giving me a juicy smile while he chewed it in front of me.

Giggling, I turned toward Brin to show her Blue's silly face. However, when I turned toward her, a little shock ran through me. The white fur around her mouth had been coated with a thick layer of cream, staining it the same color as the treat in her hands. At the same time, her ball of cream had shrunk to a fourth of its original size. Between Blue's juice covered cheeks and Brin's cream colored face, I just couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Blue and Brin both turned to look at me. They both looked surprised by my sudden fit of giggles. I wanted to just reach out with my paws and hug them, but my legs weren't long enough to wrap around both of them. So I settled for laughing even harder instead.

It was such a simple thing. And yet, it made me feel so happy. Just sitting here... sitting together with friends... just the thought of it made a big, gleeful balloon inflate and rise up inside my heart.


	28. It's just business

**•   
Chapter 26**

**"It's just business."**

* * *

"Head toward that gap in between Lickitung's Luncheon and Smeargle's Stationery."

After we sated our grumbling stomachs, the three of us left Miltank's Milk Parlor and returned to the streets. Being that I was the only one here who had lived in Treasure Town for more than half a week, Blue and Brin both relied on me to show them around the long, winding roads of the town.

"Okay, now make a right turn into that alley.."

I've said before that Treasure Town was built out from the center, with the Main Plaza being the first part of town to be established. Everything else around the plaza was built afterward, such as the Marketplace, the Guilds District and the Trading Post. As a result, the closer you are to the center of town, the more maze – like the roads become. For someone who wasn't used to Treasure Town's unique layout yet, it would be quite an ordeal to just get from one location to another!

"Keep walking forward until you see a bunch of ivy growing on the wall. That's our destination."

As for me, I'm pretty well – versed at navigating the town. I knew every single nook, cranny and alley like the back of my paw. So to speak.

"This is a dead end, Fée," Blue said as we came to a halt at the end of the alley. We were surrounded on all three sides by tall, brick walls. Thriving in the cool darkness, multitudes of thick ivy slithered around us. The vines dug in and out of the walls, making the rough contours of the bricks into their homes.

With an expression of confusion wrapped all over his blue face, Blue rapped the back of his paw against the bricks and grumbled, "Did we make a wrong turn?"

Brin made a similar look on her face as she mimicked his motion, tapping her finger against the thick vines. After a moment of silent inspection, my two friends both turned and shot me puzzled looks. Giggling, I shook my head and strode past the two of them.

Taking a seat before the thick, vine – encrusted wall at the end of the alley, I lifted my paw and brushed aside one of the larger vines. There, hidden beneath all the greenery, was a single loose brick. Smiling, I spun around Smiling, I opened my mouth and clamped my teeth over the brick's edges. Then, I started to pull it out of the wall.

_Thud!_

In no time at all, the heavy brick slid out and hit the ground. Once it was separated from the wall, a series of loud, crumbling noises echoed through our alley. Once it stopped, I grabbed onto the ivy with my paws and pulled the thick curtain of green aside, revealing a large hole that was hidden behind the vines. Speechless, both Blue and Brin goggled at at the secret entrance behind me.

"See?" filled with a sense of pride, I puffed out my chest at blue and sat beside the secret entrance, "It's not a dead end at all!" I patted the bricks with my paw and explained, "This secret passage will lead us straight into the center of the Marketplace. It's a lot quicker than taking the crowded streets outside."

"Ooh..." both of them wore awed looks on their faces as they applauded me. Seeing the two of them act like that made feel a little embarrassed.

"I – it wasn't that big a deal...!"

Still, it still made me feel a little happy, embarrassing or not. Smiling like a dope, I covered my heated face with my paw and quickly ducked into the passage before the two of them saw my reddening cheeks.

I crouched into the hole and turned around, gesturing for the two of them to follow me. Brin entered first, with Blue holding the vines out of the way for her. It was a little bit of a tight squeeze in the passage for the tall Braixen. She had to get down on her knees and flatten her ears down just to fit.

"Mn..." Brin mumbled a bit as she bumped her head against the ceiling. Blue's laugh echoed through the passage as he crawled in after us.

"It's alright Brin," he said, "just lower yourself closer to the ground and crawl. You'll have less of a headache that way."

I turned around and saw Brin nodding at Blue. She got down on her knees and elbows and began to crawl through the tunnel. With more space between the top of her head and the ceiling of the tunnel, she had an easier time making it through without getting hurt.

At the other side of the passage was another ivy – covered alley. Shaking the dust off my head, I turned toward the exit and bit down on the vines growing over the wall. Brin's head popped out of the hole right as I pulled the vines aside. She let out a labored breath as she pulled the rest of her body out. Shaking the dust off her head, she coughed and sneezed as she stumbled away from the wall.

"I'm amazed," Blue remarked as he pulled himself out of the tunnel after Brin. He patted me on the head and remarked, "You must know a lot about this town, Fée. I never would've guessed that viney alley had such a neat little secret in it."

"Oh... I only know a few tricks or two," I said as I waved my tail left and right, feeling bashful, "it's not that big of a deal, really. Just a few holes here and there, a tunnel or cranny... maybe a nook and a stair..."

"You'll have to teach us then! It sounds convenient to know all these secret paths in town!"

"Hee hee, maybe." I flicked my tail at Blue and let out a bragging sniff, "It might take a while to teach you all of them though!"

Both of my friends laughed along with me as we walked down the quiet alley, returning back to the rowdy town.

* * *

Many Pokémon tend to refer to the Marketplace as a gigantic shopping plaza. The entire thing is around the same size as the Main Plaza, if not a little bit bigger. However, instead of a great, refreshing water fountain. There was a large, grass – covered garden adorning the center of the plaza instead. Trees, bushes and some benches were placed all around the garden, giving tired Pokémon a place to rest.

However, that really isn't the main point of the Marketplace at all, oh no. No, what really draws the visitors to the Marketplace in are what's around that patch of greenery.

Surrounding the center of the plaza, and stretching all the way out to the edges of the circle that made up the Marketplace were Pokémon of all kinds, sitting on carpets, standing behind homemade stands or working behind tables.

What were they doing, you ask?

Well, it's a marketplace, isn't it?

"Explorers! Today we've got a special sale on rare Orbs that you can't find anywhere else! Trawl, Radar, and even the oh – so brilliant Luminous! Get'em now before they're sold out!"

"Got an itch for that traditional Treasure Town flavor? Want something to keep with you as you head out into the Frontier? Buy some homemade Treasure Town souvenirs here! Flags, replica badges, figurines of the Four Founders...!"

The biggest draw of the Marketplace are the many, many, and _many_ street vendors peddling their wares all over the plaza. Pokémon from all kinds of places, all walks of life and all species get together and compete here in the Marketplace to try and sell their goods to the residents and passerby of Treasure town. It's an incredible battlefield of commerce, or so I've been told.

"Mrphf! Need a place to stay the night? Take the load off here at Kangaskhan's Inn! Rest for as long as you like!"

Of course, there were more than just street peddlers populating the Marketplace. Like that Tauros over there. He's standing in front of a popular inn ran by a lovely lady by the name of Kangaskahn. A few entrepreneurial Pokémon saved up their hard earned money and built fancy buildings around the plaza. Stores and shops that sell all kinds of wares or services lined the sides of roads, at the end of streets and some even crammed in the middle of alleys.

Whether it be from a street vendor or from a store, there's a very good chance that whatever you're looking for, you'll definitely find it here in the great Marketplace of Treasure Town!

"...and that's why a lot of Pokémon call this place the crowning jewel of Treasure Town!" I finished my lecture with a proud smile on my face, "I've heard that some Pokémon even travel all the way across the Frontier just to shop here! It's that famous!"

I turned around, expecting to see my two friends standing behind me. However, all I could see was the endless crowd of Pokémon filing into the Marketplace. Where'd they go? They were following me ever since we left the alley... so when did they vanish?

"Hey! What're these?"

My head spun around when I caught Blue's voice off in the distance. An exasperated grumble left my mouth when I saw that Blue and Brin had both left me behind. The two of them had already ran off toward the rowdy bazaar, crouched over one of the many carpets in the plaza and checking out the wares. Feeling a little annoyed at being ignored, I trudged over to my friends and sat down beside them.

"I see that y'interested in my rare wares, m'blue – furred friend!" The Probopass hovering over the carpet twitched his mustache at Blue, "That item y'looking at right now is a one o'a kind, never before seen rarity here in Treasure Town! Y'wont find it anywhere else, I assure you!"

"Hoh...?"

I looked down at the fancy carpet. Lying before my partner was an oblong, gray – colored box lined with puffy silk. Nestled within the silky interior was a thin, dried – looking _thing_ covered in gray fuzz. The Probopass' stone hat clacked against his head as I tried to figure out what that thing was.

"This, m'young friends," the Probopass said, "is an item y'can only find deep within the treacherous depths of Crystal Caves. This... is a Riolu Tail!"

"A what?"

Brin and I both blinked as we stared at each other, then we turned to look at the grinning Riolu sitting in between us, before finally settling on the tail sticking out behind him. Unlike the so – called _Riolu Tail _lying in the Probopass' box, Blue's tail was broad, straight and thick. And it also had a hooked point at the end.

It looked nothing at all like what the Probopass was offering!

"A Riolu Tail!" The Probopass said with a voice filled with confidence, "Trust me when I say that this little goodie here is the real deal! Found it myself, I did." He leaned his head in close, pointing his big red nose closer to Blue, "Let me tell ya. I went to the Crystal Caves all by myself, I did. Dark, dank... treacherous! It wasn't an easy find!"

"Crystal Caves?" Blue shoved the shop keep's oversized nose away and crossed his arms, "That sounds familiar..."

The Probopass twitched his mustache as he gave my partner a nod, "Why, it should! Crystal Caves is the only place in the Frontier where those darned Riolu live!" His mustache twitched again as he let out a loud, rattling shudder, "Let me tell ya! It was a real doozy to retrieve this thing! It was all going well, with little to no problems exploring that dangerous place. When suddenly, I found myself beset by a horde of ravenous Riolu! A bunch'a crazed little thieves lookin' to rob m'goods!"

"Ravenous?" I echoed, "A horde?"

"That's right! A horde of those cruel, horrid creatures! I barely escaped from that situation with my life and my belongings intact!" The Probopass paused to release another loud rattle, "It was by pure luck that I managed to get a hold of this rare treasure! It wasn't easy, I assure ya!"

"Hooh..."

"But how do you know it was a Riolu's tail?" I asked. My eyes narrowed as I felt nothing but skepticism listening to the shop keep's words, "Did you accidentally pull it off while you were running away from them or something?"

"Er..." The Probopass turned away from me as he moved back an inch, "h – how I got it isn't important! What's important is whether or not y'kids are interested in getting y'paws on this here rare treasure!"

"Rare treasure, huh?" Blue's tail twitched as he rubbed his chin. He turned to me, grinning like a goof, "What do you think, Fée? A Riolu's tail! Doesn't it sound amazing? Maybe we should pick it up!"

The way he said it, along with the stupid look he had on his face was enough to make me burst out laughing. I wrapped my paws over my face and turned away from my friend, trying in vain to keep my giggles under control. Even Brin was having trouble trying to hold back her mirth. With our paws and hands clasped over our faces in desperation, we both just turned away from the scene, laughing.

"What's the joke here?" The Probopass said, looking a little perturbed by our actions, "If y'said something funny earlier, then it flew over my head. Why're y'laughing?"

"N – no... it's not a joke, it's just..." I tried to explain, but I couldn't even get halfway through my sentence before another tide of laughter washed over me. A puff of steam escaped out the top of the Probopass' hat as fired a livid glare at the three of us.

"Fine then!" He seethed, "If y'three aren't interested, then why don't y'get off my carpet so someone else can appreciate m'goods?"

"Alright, alright," Blue turned to smile at Brin and I before standing back up. He whipped his tail over to his side and grabbed it with his right paw, "I'm really sorry about all of that. We'll... we'll be going now."

"Mmrgh..."

I was still feeling a little bit lightheaded from all that laughing, so I was leaning against Blue's leg as we left the angry Probopass behind. While we were wandering around the crowded Marketplace, Brin was poking and prodding at Blue's tail.

"I wonder what that thing really was?" Blue said, flicking his tail out of Brin's hands and into his own paws.

I gave a little snort and shook my head, "It definitely wasn't a Riolu's tail. Seriously, that tail looked nothing like yours!"

Blue tapped me on the forehead with his tail and smirked, "I dunno, maybe my tail will look like that shriveled old thing eventually."

"Don't even joke about that, Blue! It would be horrifying if your tail turned into that... thing! Right, Brin?"

Brin snatched Blue's tail out of his paws and nodded in agreement with me. She waved it around like a baton, pointing it back at the Probopass behind us. I turned around and noticed that he had already recovered from his indignation, and was trying to sell that odd thing to another group of Pokémon.

"Alright, no jokes," Blue smiled as he retrieved his tail, "why was that guy trying to sell us something like that though? If it wasn't a real Riolu tail, then why was he calling it that?"

"There's a lot of Pokémon like that," I said to them as we passed by another carpet filled with merchandise, "sometimes, sellers try to trick customers and passerby to buy fake 'rare treasures' from them. I've seen it happen a lot of times, with Pokémon being suckered into buying junk that they were lead to believe were valuable treasures or artifacts."

"For money? That, um, Poké thing?"

I nodded, "That's right. The Marketplace is all about making and spending Poké, after all. So there might be a few unscrupulous Pokémon that would try and trick you out of your money for profit." I turned to Brin and held up my paw, "That's why everyone should always be careful when dealing with the Pokémon here. You never know if the store owner might be a swindler!"

After I shared that tidbit of information, we crossed over several carpets until we reached the large, grassy center of the Marketplace. Much to my delight, there was one open bench left for the three of us. I bounded over to the bench and claimed it, sitting and smiling wide as my friends sat down beside me.

As I relaxed under the shade provided by the big tree, I felt a small poke at me side. I turned around and saw Brin prodding me with her finger.

"What is it, Brin?"

"R – R... Riolu..." she mumbled, "Riolu... bad? Darned? C – cruel?"

She looked over me and at Blue, who was playing around with his tail absentmindedly. I shook my head and waved my paw at Brin.

"I think that guy was just making stuff up," I said, "he probably made up his experience in Crystal Caves just to make that item sound more lucrative." I sighed and shook my head again, "Also, that Probopass never saw a Riolu before, I bet." Jabbing a paw at my partner, I smiled at Brin and said, "If he had, he would probably be running away at the sight of Blue."

"I'm not that scary, am I?" Blue poked at my paw with the hooked point of his tail, "If he asked nicely, I might've given him my tail if he really wanted it."

"Blue... don't try to sell off your limbs. Especially not after Brin fixed up your leg."

"Mn!" Brin nodded in agreement, shaking her little book at Blue. The Riolu just made a barking laugh and waved his tail underneath my nose, tickling it. I pondered biting down on it for a moment, but my thoughts were cut off by the arrival of another voice.

"Good heavens! Blue, is that you?"

All of a sudden, a flurry of white and green filled our vision as we turned our heads. Standing before us was a tall, winged Pokémon. His beak was curled into a bright smile, and his white – feathered wings were outstretched as if he was going to give us a big hug.

"Xatu!" Blue shouted, springing up from the bench, "How have you been?"

Xatu clacked his beak as he grasped my partner's paw with his wings, "I've been great, thank you for asking." He shook Blue's paw as he said, "I've been meaning to talk to you again, my friend. But I haven't seen you around the Marketplace or the fountain yesterday."

"We've been off exploring, mister Xatu," I said, "Blue and I haven't been in town for most of yesterday. And we just got back a few hours ago."

"Ah, that explains it then," mister Xatu let go of Blue's paw and returned his wings back across his chest. "I see you've also made a new friend. It's nice to meet you." He held out his wing to Brin. She flinched.

"It's alright, Brin." I said, patting her on the back, "That Pokémon is mister Xatu. He's a friend of ours, and he's a great guy. He helped us out a lot a few days ago, when we ran into a lot of trouble here in town."

Although she still looked a little uncertain, Brin clasped her hands together and nodded at me. She turned toward mister Xatu and have him a small bow.

"Oh no. No, no, no," he said, his green face flushing bright red, "You flatter me too much, Fée. I only did what I should've done then, you needn't praise me for that."

He covered his face with his wing while Blue chuckled. While Xatu was hiding his face, I noticed that he was wearing a strange, circular badge on the back of his right wing. It was a small badge, white in color and had a symbol embossed on it that resembled the outline of a golden coin.

"What's that, mister Xatu?" I asked, pointing my paw at his fancy badge.

"Hm?" Xatu uncovered his reddened face and glanced at his wing. A smile appeared on his face as he displayed the badge to me, "Ah, this? This is actually the reason why I was looking for you two."

"I've left my tent and store behind for a new pursuit, you see," Xatu explained, "this badge is a symbol of my new purpose, so to speak."

"Hm? You're not selling those charms and stuff anymore?" Blue said.

Xatu nodded, "That's right. In fact, I would like to invite the three of you to my new establishment. Would you all mind coming with me for a moment? It would be a little difficult for me to explain what it is without all of you seeing it for yourselves."

"I don't mind visiting," he turned toward Brin and I, "how about it? We have some time to go take a look, right?"

I looked up into the sky. The sun's crossed the midway point now, meaning that the day was already half over. However, that's still plenty of time to take Brin over to the library before bringing her over to the Phantom Patisserie. I looked over at my yellow – furred friend and smiled. She returned my grin and nodded back at me.

"Sure, we have time," I said as I jumped off the bench, "lead the way, mister Xatu!"

"You can just call me Xatu, Fée," he said, "my new establishment is only but a few steps away, we'll be there in a few minutes."

* * *

Xatu lead us out of the center of the Marketplace, and took us toward a street away from the plaza. There weren't as many Pokémon on the road compared to the Marketplace, with only a few passerby drifting around. I noticed that the buildings here were a bit more on the dilapidated side in comparison to the other side of town. Cracks, holes and missing chunks were present on almost every building. The road was also much harder to traverse, being covered with plenty of litter and debris.

"This section of the town was struck harder by that storm than the rest," Xatu explained, "many Pokémon that held property here abandoned their holdings to seek better, cleaner buildings on the other side of town."

"This place..." I raised my muzzle up into the air and took a deep sniff. A distinct, salty scent entered my nose. Stretching out ahead of at the end of the street lied a familiar sight to me. A large outcropping of brown stone, hovering in between the sky and the sea...

"Ah, you've been here before, Fée?" Xatu said, "Sharpedo Bluff's seen better days, I'm afraid to say. Having taken the full brunt of that windstorm like that, I'm amazed it's still standing."

"Sharpedo Bluff?" Blue said, "Is that the name of that cliff over there?"

I nodded, "That's right. It's called that because if you look at it from Treasure Beach below, it forms the shape of a Sharpedo's face."

"Huh," Blue muttered as he scratched his cheek, "back at the beach..."

"I don't think we got to see it then," I said, thinking back to a few days ago, "there were a lot of fallen trees and debris lying around the place. It was a real mess."

"And it will remain that way for a while," Xatu interjected, "all the Mankey and Primeape are still up to their nostrils with cleaning up and repairing the town proper. There's not much time nor spare bodies to go down and clear out all the boulders infesting the beach."

"It's that bad?" I said, "I was there just a few days ago, it didn't seem like it was in that bad of a shape. I mean... no one will be able to relax on the beach with all the junk lying around, but boulders?"

Xatu clacked his beak at me and said, "A few chunks of the cliffside were jarred off by the windstorm. Perhaps you didn't see it, but the boulders from the avalanche cut off a good portion of the beach." He rubbed the bottom of his face with his wing, "If I remember correctly, the entire eastern portion of the shore is inaccessible as of now."

"The eastern side of the beach... If that's the case, then it makes sense that we didn't see the blockage." I turned to Blue and explained, "You see, the Beach Cave is on the western side. When we left, we just turned and left the shore instead of going any further."

"I see," Blue said, "what if the boulders had blocked off the eastern side though?"

"Then we'd have to send out a request for a rescue," I said, shaking my head, "and asking for a rescue while trapped on the beach... that's both embarrassing _and_ expensive."

"Ho ho!" Xatu's wing flew up to his face as he made a loud chuckle, "If you're worried about money, then look no further! For we have arrived at our destination!"

Xatu halted in the middle of the road, and threw his wings out wide. His face was turned to the side of the road; his beak was pointed at one of the buildings.

The building, in comparison to the veritable ruins around it, looked pristine and brand new. The entire front of the place was built with shiny, yellow – colored bricks, and there were windows with thick iron bars fastened over them. A large sigil was embedded above the front door, displaying what looked like a large, gold coin.

A small wooden sign lay at the front door's side. I trotted over and sat before it, giving it a quick read.

"'Felicity Pawnbroker,'" I said aloud, "'We buy anything and everything! Exchange your treasures, valuables and artifacts for Poké! We also run an appraisal service!'"

"'Pawnbroker?'" Blue echoed, looking confused, "What's that?"

"Hm, hm, hm...!" Xatu chuckled into his wing as he walked up to the front door, "Come inside, my friends! And I'll give you all the grand tour of my new establishment!"

Before Xatu could put his wing on the doorknob though, a loud _squeak_ sliced through the air, forcing him to take a step back as the door opened on its own. I peered around Xatu's body and spotted a Pokémon with a coat of cream – colored fur standing in the doorway. A small, golden coin glimmered atop the Pokémon's forehead, sparkling as it walked out of the store and into the noontime sun.

"I could hear everything from inside, Xatu," the Pokémon spoke in a low, feminine voice. Her paws were placed firmly on her hips as she walked up to Xatu, her eyes narrowed into a glare, "what do you mean by 'your new establishment?'"

"Ah... erm," Xatu took a step away from the Pokémon and turned to give us a nervous smile, "a – allow me to introduce you all to my assistant. This is Meowth. She's here to run this store with me."

"Call me Surety. Pleased to meet you all." the Meowth said, raising up her paw to greet us. But as soon as she finished introducing herself, her expression sharpened once more. She took a long step toward Xatu and glared right up into his face from his chest, "Now that the introductions are out of the way, I'll need you to explain yourself. Xatu."

"Ahem..." Xatu tried to step back, but before he gained a single inch, Surety's paw shot out and grabbed him by the wing. She twisted his feathers around so that his badge was visible.

"Just because you wear this badge doesn't mean you're the sole proprietor of this place, Xatu," she said, "don't forget. I'm here to keep an eye on you. So don't get funny ideas!"

"O – of course! I wouldn't dream of being presumptuous!"

"Good." Surety revealed a toothy smile and let go of his wing. Then, she turned toward us and gave a quick bow. "You must be this fool's friends. Welcome to Felicity Pawnbroker! Please, follow me inside! That means you too, Xatu."

After firing off another chilling glare at the tall Xatu, Surety spun around and returned inside the Pawnbroker. Once her curly tail disappeared from view, all four of us let out a loud, tension – filled sigh. It was as though a storm had just blown right through our midst.

"W – well..." Xatu cleared his throat and tried to pat his ruffled feathers back into place, "we shouldn't keep her waiting, eheh..."

"Who was that?" I asked, "She didn't seem very friendly to you, Xatu."

"Like I said, Surety's my assistant." Xatu shook his feathered head, "It's a bit of a long story, something that only adults should worry about. For now, why don't the three of you head on in and get out of the sun?"

I had more questions rolling around in my mind, but Xatu simply shook his head as I opened my mouth to ask. The expression on his face shouted 'don't ask, please.' Despite my curiosity demanding that I know more, I felt that it was polite to abstain from prying for now.

Blue and Brin both entered into the store behind Xatu. I decided to lag behind on purpose, staying outside for just a moment longer. I looked over to the end of the street. For a few silent minutes, I just continued to stare at Sharpedo Bluff...

* * *

"Woah!"

Blue's excited shout forced me to flatten my ears down as I pushed through the front doors. The first thing I saw was my partner dancing about in the middle of two tall shelves, holding onto a pair of large jars. Both Brin and Xatu looked like they were in a state of panic as they struggled to keep the jars balanced on Blue's paws.

A quiet giggle floated over from behind the three of them. I craned my neck around and saw Surety sitting on a desk covered in paper and sparkling coins. The Meowth was scribbling onto a small clipboard as she watched over them with a small smirk on her face. She waved a paw at Blue, sneering.

"Careful now," Surety said, "both of those jars are estimated to be worth at least 5,000 Poké. Break one, and you might find yourself in debt for quite a while. Break both... well, you don't even want to think about it."

"F – five thousand?" I said, aghast, "I've never even seen half that amount in my entire life!"

Surety let out another giggle and shook her clipboard at me, "Not many do. And not many should."

She leapt off the desk in a flurry of paper and coinage, then strutted over to where my friends were struggling over the pots. With one swipe of her paw, she shoved Blue in the gut and threw him aside. The two jars went flying up into the air, much to Xatu and Brin's shock.

"That's why Felicity Pawnbroker exists, Eevee," Surety's paws shot out as the jars came hurtling toward the ground. In a single deft move, she caught both jars and shoved the two jars into the shelves beside her, one on each side. She dusted her paws off while Blue, Brin and Xatu all wore pale, exhausted expressions on their faces.

"That's why... this place exists?" I echoed, tilting my head to the side, "I don't understand. What _is_ a Pawnbroker in the first place?"

"Hm, hm..." Surety tapped her clipboard against Xatu's side, "you explain it to your little friends, Xatu. After all, you were the ones who brought them here."

"V – very well..." Xatu said, panting. He held his wing up to his chest and took a deep breath before addressing us. "The purpose of this store – Felicity Pawnbroker – is to essentially exchange valuables off other Pokémon for Poké. Whether they be residents, explorers... so on and so forth."

"Exchange valuables?" I repeated back to Xatu, "So... you're buying stuff off other Pokémon?"

"In a sense," Xatu took a small box off the shelf and handed it over to me, "what we do here isn't exactly _buying_, but rather, _holding_."

"What does that mean?" I said as I opened the box. Inside was a tiny, silvery – gray medal. It had a small pickaxe embossed on the surface, and below it were the words 'Iron Mine Magnes' engraved near the bottom edge.

"What he means is," Surety snatched the coin from my paws and flicked it into the air, "Pokémon wander in here, throw us their junk, and we appraise it for its worth." Her curly tail flicked out and snatched the medal before it hit the ground, "Then we loan them an appropriate amount of Poké for the item."

"I see..." I said, "but you said 'loan,' so do they have to pay it back?"

Surety gave me a toothy grin and shoved the medal back into my paws, "Only if they want their item back. If they don't return for it after a week, that junk they pawned off is ours."

"That explains why this place is such a mess," Blue remarked, "a lot of Pokémon don't want their stuff back, huh?"

Blue was right. Although the store looked fancy and shiny from the outside, the inside was a whole other case. Treasures, valuables and junk were scattered all over the store with little to no care about their well being. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a shiny, golden goblet resting in the same corner as a bunch of dirty rags. While the two expensive jars from earlier took their seats on the shelves beside a pile of chipped seashells.

Even the Surety's desk was a disaster zone, in a manner of speaking. Piles and piles of paper were scattered all over the place, as well as coins, books and a rather beaten – looking treasure box. The only thing in the entire store that looked as though it was given some modicum of respect was a framed picture of a handsome Persian that was hanging off the wall.

"Reminds you a bit of the Guildmaster's office, doesn't it?"

"I – in a way..." I clasped my paw over my mouth in order to hide my smile, "You shouldn't say stuff like that about the Guildmaster though..."

"Heh," Blue shrugged and returned to examining the shelves with Brin.

"I have a question though," I said to Surety.

"Shoot."

"If all this store does is loan money out to Pokémon..." I said, "then how do you make money back? It doesn't seem like a lot of Pokémon want to come back for their goods."

"Hm, hm..." Surety giggled again and turned her back to me. She walked over to the only clean spot of the store, the area around the Persian's picture. Her paw pointed at the handsome Pokémon as she started speaking again.

"Here's a little secret for you. The economy of Treasure Town is constantly being monitored by our clan of Persian and Meowth, Eevee," Surety explained, "Treasures... valuables... anything of value can be returned into the long, circular river of money with little to no trouble."

"R – river of money?" The image of a flowing brook filled with golden coins came to mind. My imagination was cut short by the sound of Xatu's clacking beak.

"Let me explain it further. Surety's a part of a family that is rather... skilled at selling goods at the Marketplace, my dear," Xatu said, "so even if we're a little in the red from loaning out too much Poké, Surety should be able to get us back up and running if given a little time."

Surety hopped over to the desk and sat down on it, "Of course, Xatu. That depends on how skilled your appraisal skills are." She crossed her legs and picked up the clipboard, tapping it against one of her claws, "After all, if you can't give us accurate estimates on how much an object is worth, as well as make some profitable trades... well, not even your sudden windfall can get you out of your debt this time."

"Erm..." Xatu beak trembled as he hurried over to Blue. He grabbed my partner's paws with his wings and pulled him aside, "W – why don't we get off this dull topic a – and take a gander at some of the interesting wares other Pokémon brought in? Come on, I'll give you a quick look around!"

"Cool!" Blue grinned as he let Xatu lead him and Brin around toward the back of the store, leaving me alone in the center with Surety. I was about to follow him around as well, but...

"Hang on a second, Eevee," Surety hopped off the desk and stopped me. She tapped me on the forehead with her paw and whispered into my ear, "I have a question for you."

"A question?" I said, "What is it?"

"That blue – furred friend of yours..." she glanced over to the shelves for a moment before continuing, "I've never seen one in person before... but he's a Riolu, isn't he?"

As soon as I heard her say 'Riolu,' I heard a few alarm bells go off inside my head. I narrowed my eyes and whispered back, "He's my friend."

"Sure, I'm aware of that," Surety replied with a lofty wave of her paw, "but if he really is a Riolu... then I'd like it if you don't bring him around here any more than you have to. In fact, never bring him here. Just keep him away from the store. Forever."

"What?" I separated my head from hers and hissed back, "Why? He's mister Xatu's friend!"

Surety glanced over at the shelves again. Xatu, Blue and Brin seemed to have vanished somewhere in the store, so they weren't aware of our discussion. She turned back toward me and folded her arms.

"It's nothing personal, Eevee," she said, flicking a single claw at me, "but you must realize how damning it is for our business to have a Riolu wandering around the premises. You know how Riolu are! Rumors could spread, and our reputation could tank as a result." Her eyes narrowed, "And if our reputation drops, so do our profits. And that wouldn't be good for mister Xatu, now would it?"

"But Blue's not like that!"

Surety shook her head at me, "Listen to me. This isn't a case of how your buddy acts or how he is. But this is a case of how our business will look to our customers!" She jabbed her paw toward the shelves and said, "I'm sure your Riolu boyfriend is nice and all, but it doesn't matter if someone comes wandering in and sees him. They'll either get mad or get spooked away."

"That's... that's not fair..."

She snorted and placed her paws on her hips, "The world isn't fair sometimes, Eevee. Let me make it clear to you. I have no personal issue with you or your buddy. It's just business."

"But... why?" I asked, "Why does everyone hate Riolu so much? Even that store owner back at the Marketplace had nothing but bad things to say about Riolu..."

"I'm not too privy on gossip like that," Surety replied with a shrug, "I only care about things that will make profits for me, and I know for a fact that the reputation of Riolu as a whole is enough to drive my income down."

I sighed and sat down on the floor. I touched the ribbon on my ear and shook my head. Over and over again, I keep hearing other Pokémon talk about Riolu in a negative way. Even Loudred back at the guild didn't have many good things to say about them. Just why does everyone hate Riolu?

"Hey, cheer up Eevee," Surety said, wearing a dishonest smile on her face, "look on the bright side! You're an explorer, right? If it ever comes up that somebody wants to see a Riolu in person, you can just show them your friend!" She let out a snide giggle, "For a nominal fee, of course..."

"I – I can't do that!" I stammered back, "Blue's my friend! I can't just... use him like that!"

"Oh please," Surety said, rolling her eyes at me, "life's all about making profit. If you don't take advantages of what you got, you'll never be able to put anything to your name." Her eyes went to the Explorer's Pack at my side, "Though, from the looks of things, you don't look like you have much behind your name in the first place. Do you?"

"That's none of your business!" I snarled back, hiding my pack behind my tail, "I – I'm fine... money – wise, thank you very much!"

"Hoh?" Surety's eyes narrowed even more, giving her the appearance of having two lines on her face, "How suspicious! But... I wont pry." She waved a paw at me and made a toothy smile, "Remember, I only care about what makes me a tidy profit. But... if you're ever strapped for money, little Eevee, you can always pay me a visit."

"Just leave your blue – furred friend behind, mmhm?"

"Suret–!"

_Thunk!_

"We're back!"

Both of our heads spun around toward the front of the store. Somehow, someway, the three of them had ended up out of the store and reentered through the entrance. Xatu, Blue and Brin all looked as though they had ended up in a pile of dust somehow, with their feathers and fur all covered in gray – brown grime. Blue walked up to me with a big grin on his face, and his paws behind his head.

"How in the world did you get so dirty?" I asked, "And... why were you even outside?"

"I have no clue!" Blue said with little to no shame behind his voice, "Xatu, Brin and I were just wandering around, looking at all the junk and stuff. We went through a bunch'a shelves, and cabinets checking out all the pawned items. Next thing we knew, we were back out on the streets, covered in dust."

"It was fun, wasn't it?" He said to the gray – covered Braixen by his side. She nodded back at him and sneezed, throwing out a little cloud of dust in front of her.

I glanced over to Brin. The yellow and white fur on her face had been recolored with splotches of gray and brown. She was trying to clean herself off with her hands, but all that was accomplishing was getting her arms gray and brown as well. Xatu took his wing and dusted some of the grime off her fur, as well as his own. The amount of dust that ended up littering the floor made Surety hiss a little.

"Hm? My, that ribbon on your ear..."

I looked up from the dust piles and saw Xatu examining the ribbon that Blue gave me. Smiling, I patted it with my paw.

"Oh this?" I said with a little pride in my chest, "Blue gave it to me a while ago. Isn't it pretty?"

"He did, did he?" Xatu covered his beak as he chuckled, "Yes, I agree with you. It is quite a pretty thing, isn't it?"

A sudden thought popped into my mind. A gift... hm?

I glanced around the shelves, running my eyes over all the many different objects and knick – knacks strewn around. A gift for Blue... that's what I wanted to find. Maybe something easy for him to carry around, or an article of clothing?

"What are you looking for, Fée?" Xatu asked, "A souvenir, perhaps?"

I took a quick glance over at Blue. He looked like he was busy trying to help Brin get the dust off her fur, but the two of them were just accomplishing getting more dirt on each other than off of them. Beaming, I hurried over to Xatu's side and beckoned him him to lean his ear in closer.

"I'm looking for a gift to give Blue," I whispered, "like the ribbon he gave me. I want to give him something light, something convenient..."

Xatu hummed as he straightened himself back up, rubbing the bottom of his beak with his wing. "I don't believe you'll find anything like that in here. Everything's still a bit of a mess, as you can see. I wouldn't want to give anyone anything found in here as a gift, anyway."

"Oh..." my ears drooped down out of disappointment.

"I think I might have a suggestion for you if you're looking for a gift similar to that ribbon..."

I spun around and found Surety sneering at me. Surety chuckled again and walked over to her desk. She took a seat behind it and picked up a slip of paper. Curious... as well as a little suspicious, I glanced over the top of the desk to see what she was doing. It looked like she was scribbling down an address of some kind on the paper.

"Here you go," Surety finished writing and folded the paper in half. I bit down on the slip of paper and took it off of her paw. After putting some distance between me and the Meowth, I sat down and took a look at what she had written.

"'Meowstic Bespoke Tailoring...'" I looked up from the paper and tilted my head at Surety, "A tailor shop?"

"I'm rather... _familiar_ with the proprietor of that store," Surety said with a slim smile, "if you say that it was I who sent you, I'm sure he'll give you a discount." She paused for a quick giggle, "He's a skilled clothier, and makes very fashionable clothes. If you're looking to find a gift like that silly bow of yours, there's no better place than dear Meowstic's."

"I see..." although I was still a little hesitant to accept anything from Surety, I figured that something like a tailor store was worth a look. I gave Xatu and Surety quick bows as I stuffed the paper into my pack.

Xatu returned my bow, "Then you'll be leaving now, is it?"

"Well... I don't have much time left..." my face went a little hot as I glanced back at my friends, "There's still a few more things I want to do before the day ends."

"Time's money, they say," Surety remarked with a sneer. I sent her a glare and a frown. If time was money, then I wouldn't want to spend any more of it with her!

"Feel free to drop by anytime, Fée," Xatu said, snapping me out of my irritation, "if you find anything out there during an expedition or anything, you can bring it around here for me to appraise. I'll do it free of charge, just for you."

"I will!" After giving another quick bow, I spun around and ran over to my friends. Blue and Brin had just managed to get the dust off their fur when I ran up to them. With a bright smile on my face, I patted my partner on the leg.

"Blue, let's get going!"

"Eh?" Blue looked surprised as I pulled him along by biting on his paw, "What's the rush?"

"It's a secret!" I said through a mouthful of blue fur, "Now come on!"

"A – alright! Ow, ow, don't tug so hard!" He turned his head around and waved his other arm at Xatu, "Bye Xatu! It was nice meeting you again!"

"Likewise, my friends!" Xatu shouted back, "Good luck with your expeditions!"

* * *

Following the directions that Surety handed me, we left the dilapidated road and made our way back into the bustling Marketplace. The activity here was dwindling down, as the day was nearing its end. Many carpets and tables had been picked up and taken away, and their owners as well. No one wants to do business under the cold curtain of night, after all.

There being less Pokémon and stores around made it easier for us to traverse the Marketplace though, so having less activity wasn't all that bad. We managed to cross right through the center of the plaza and reached the other side in no time flat. After taking a left turn, we snuck our way into another side street.

"It should be right around here, I think," I said as I peered down at Surety's letter, "fourth building on the right, should have a somewhat big sign displayed out front. Can't miss it, he says."

A few giggling Yanma wearing colorful ribbons and bells buzzed past us as we scanned our eyes around the street. Right beside us stood a store that was displaying several fanciful – looking headwear, like soft floppy hats or headbands. The building opposite that was advertising something about frilly this – or – thats for your tail. Either way, it was all very foreign and confusing to me.

"I don't think I've ever been here before," I mumbled as we watched a Mightyena wearing a tall, white hat waltz on by, "it feels like a really rich district."

To say that it's a rich district feels like an understatement, to be honest. I've heard before that a lot of Pokémon moved to Treasure Town from more fanciful and rich places like from beyond the mountain range. I suppose a few of those Pokémon must've brought with them a little bit of the city flavor to this place. It's almost as if I've walked into someplace outside of town!

"Excuse me."

Brin, Blue and I all moved out of the way as a gussied up Onix came rumbling through the street. Jewels, baubles and even a pretty shawl were thrown on the huge Pokémon's body. I had to admit, even though I've never been too interested in my self image, I was getting a little jealous of how mature some of the Pokémon residing here looked.

"Wow, that Pokémon was covered in a lot of junk," Blue remarked. He nudged Brin with his paw and smirked, "I think we saw some of those same jewels lying around back at Xatu's place, right? He said that most of them were probably fake, worthles–"

"B – Blue!" I jammed my paws into his mouth to shut him up as Brin started to giggle, "Don't say stuff like that out loud!"

I put on a stupid grin on my face and looked around at all the other passerby around us, trying to mollify them with my smile. Some of the high class – looking Pokémon glanced at us, sneering and scowling before turning away. It was a little like being surrounded by a crowd of Suretys. I could catch a few snide remarks about our appearance being thrown around between them in hushed whispers. Sighing, I let go of Blue's mouth and slumped my shoulders.

Mature or not, I don't think I'm very suitable for this kind of environment...

"Fée..." a small hand patted me on the back, drawing my attention back up. Brin was smiling at me, looking like she was trying to cheer me up. I didn't want to make her feel worried, so I put a grin back on my face and shook my head to clear my head.

"Blue, Brin," I said, turning around, "let's go check out that store Surety mentioned and get out of this snooty place as soon as possible."

Ignoring all the scowls and glares that were being sent our way, courtesy of my loud remark, I resumed my trot down this fancy street. As we walked, I counted the number of buildings as we passed by them. Once we hit the fourth building, I stopped and stood before it.

Like what Surety's letter said, there was indeed a sign standing before the building. Much like everything else on the street, it was a very elegant display with gold edgings and lavish handwriting. Out of all the signs I've seen in town, this one was probably one of the most eye – catching I've seen!

"So what does it say, Fée?" Blue said, snapping me out of my admiration – induced reverie.

"Oh, erm!" Feeling a little hot in the face, I tore my eyes away from the shiny sign and forced myself to read the writing. Much like Duskull's, the handwriting on the sign was filled with elegant loops, curls and swishes. It made reading the sign much harder than it really should've been.

"'Meowstic Bespoke Tailoring: _Haute Couture_'"

"Tailoring?" Blue echoed, looking confused. He glanced at Brin, who was wearing the exact same expression as he was. Then, they both turned to stare at me, waiting for me to give them an explanation.

"W – well..." I was stammering, trying to figure out the best way to explain it without revealing my intentions to Blue, "X – Xatu recommended that I take a look at this store! H – he said that his friend runs it, and that we should go take a peek at his goods!"

Blue scratched his cheek as he looked up at the storefront, "Xatu recommended it? Weird." He strolled up to the front door and put a paw on the doorknob, "He didn't say anything about this place earlier. Did he, Brin?"

Brin tapped the cover of her book and closed her eyes for a moment. Then, she shook her head and shrugged.

"I – it doesn't matter!" I hurried over to the front door and placed my paw on the doorknob, "We're here anyway, so let's go take a look! Come on!"

Twisting the doorknob – and Blue's paw at the same time – I threw the door wide open. A soft tinkling noise rang out from inside the store, welcoming the three of us in as we walked through the entrance.

The very second I took my first step into the store, a powerful scent assaulted my nose. My paws rushed up to my muzzle, covering my nose. The smell was like a hammer slamming into my face, a hammer made out of a pungent candy! The air in the store was so sweet, it was making the insides of my mouth wet just by breathing in it!

"Mnngh!" Brin was clutching her hands over her nose too, trying to block out the scent.

"Ugh..." Even Blue couldn't handle how overpowering the sweetness was. I could see his eyes watering up as he clamped his paws over his snout.

I flicked my head around the store, trying to find out just what was causing this sticky sweet smell. The inside of the place was filled to the brim with all kinds of elegant, fancy and ornate clothing. There were mannequins placed all around the floor, wearing beautiful clothing like beaded scarves, capes with frilly edges and tasseled coats. Hats, bandanas and ribbons were placed on shelves in a clean and organized fashion, unlike Xatu's store.

Other than the clothes though, there was a small, circular tea table made out of pink glass standing at the side of the store. A small, ornate bowl was placed in the center of the table, with twin pink swirls or steam rising out from it. Two Pokémon were sitting beside the table, one of them looked remarkably familiar...

"Oh my! Now this is a pleasant surprise."

One of the Pokémon left the table and sauntered over to us. With a coat of bright white and pink fur, as well as a pair of dainty bows worn on his ear and chest, there was no mistaking who this Pokémon was. The image of that advertisement we picked up back at the Main Plaza came flooding back into my mind, and with it came a sense of slight dread.

"Good afternoon, Fée. Blue," the Sylveon said in his distinctive baritone voice. He gave us an elegant bow and smiled, "I didn't think we'd meet again so soon. How lovely it is to see you two!"

"Barie?" I said, stunned, "What are you doing here?"

He gave me a chuckle and grinned, "That's a question I should be asking, my dear," he tapped me on the tip of my nose with his ribbon, "I'm not too familiar with this town just yet, but I do believe that this street is moreso for the obscenely rich, no?"

"Obscenely...?" I shook my head and brushed away his ribbon, "W – well we..."

"Ah, you don't need to tell me," Barie said, waving away his own question with his paw, "I'm just happy to see the two of you again. How have you been?"

"We've just returned from an expedition, actually," I said, "Blue and I were out of town exploring yesterday."

"That's right! You two are explorers, aren't you?" Barie chuckled and shook his head, "My, we'll all have to sit down and have a little talk sometime. I would love to hear all about your experiences outside the town."

He flicked his ribbon over at Blue and made to rub his cheek with it, but a low growl from my partner made him quickly withdraw. Chuckling, the Sylveon shook his head and looked at the Pokémon standing beside me.

"My, I see you've made a new friend as well!" Barie held out his paw to Brin, "And quite an adorable one at that, I might add."

Brin glanced at Barie's paw for moment, then immediately hid herself behind Blue. She peeked out at the Sylveon from behind my partner with a scared look on her face.

"Ah... well..."

"Barie? Whoever might you be talking to?"

A high, pompous voice came floating in from behind our Sylveon friend. I looked around Barie to see who it was. I felt my jaw drop when I saw her.

An unbelievably beautiful Pokémon was walking toward us. The Pokémon had a shiny, silky coat of tan fur covering her body, with a collar of purple around her neck and her ears. A sparkling scarf was wrapped around her neck, with little beaded tassels hanging off the ends. Along with the scarf, a tiny, floppy hat adorned the top of her head. She wore a purse covered in sequins and beads around her neck, a stark contrast to the drab Explorer's Pack around mine.

Just standing before this radiant Pokémon was making me feel nervous. To think that someone like this lived in the same town as me... it was startling, to say the least! Compared to her, we must've looked like a trio of rags!

"Ah, Delcatty," Barie turned and addressed the dazzling Pokémon, "I was just greeting a few friends of mine."

"Your friends?" Delcatty's face scrunched up as she looked over Blue, Brin and I with a scrutinizing gaze. Feeling a little self – conscious, I sat down and tried to brush away some specks of dust and dirt off of my ruff. But all I managed to accomplish was making my fur look even more ruffled than before.

After a moment of tense silence, Delcatty let out a loud sigh and touched her forehead with her paw. She turned toward Barie and said, "They look like vagrants! So... ruffled, dirty, messy and... ruffled! I'm stunned that somebody like you would have such inelegant– no, _declass__é_ friends like this, Barie. Stunned!"

It was like she had just tossed a bucketful of cold water at us. My face grew red hot as embarrassment and shame washed over my heart. I glanced over at Blue, who just wore a puzzled expression on his face, while Brin looked a little forlorn as she hugged her book tight.

"Now, now," Barie shook his head and frowned at her, "I would greatly appreciate it if you wouldn't speak of _my friends_ that way, Delcatty."

"Absurd," she said, "simply absurd. And here I thought I finally met someone from the city who understood me. Absurd."

With a flick of her dainty tail, she turned around and strutted toward the back of the store. She nudged open a door with her paw and disappeared behind it, leaving us behind in the store with just Barie.

"I apologize for that," Barie said, giving us a wry grin, "there are some Pokémon who still haven't adapted to the frontier life, I suppose. I'm really sorry you had to experience that."

I shook my head and sighed, "It's alright. I – I shouldn't be bothered by stuff like that anyway. I'm an explorer after all... I'm supposed to–"

"...get dirty, right?" Barie chuckled and patted me on the chest with his paw, "I remember. Still, that doesn't mean you should just accept insults like that, my dear. Get mad a little!" He looked over at Blue and added, "And you as well, Blue. If your lady's being talked down like that. You ought to defend her a bit as well."

Blue nodded, folding his arms across his chest, "I understand."

"...you weren't thinking of punching her, were you?" I said, poking my partner in the leg. He made a quick whistle and looked away, confirming my suspicions. Barie and Brin both laughed as I bonked him in the side with my forehead.

"She mentioned the city, didn't she?" While still headbutting Blue, I turned my head to the side to look at Barie, "Isn't that where you were from?"

"Indeed," Barie said, "in fact, I believe most of the regulars of this rather affluent street here are all migrants from the city. Which is why it looks so... gaudy. It's surprising, really. I came here to avoid the urban life, and now I find myself standing in the middle of a facsimile of it." He sighed as a depressed expression flitted across his face, "I suppose it's hard for some Pokémon to change, even after moving."

He shook his head and put on a smile, "But enough about that. You three must have your reasons for being here, right? You should get on with whatever you were planning to do."

"Oh, that's right!" I pulled my head away from Blue and scanned around the store, looking for the storeowner. Other than my friends and Barie though, I couldn't find anyone else standing around. Confused, I turned back to Barie and asked, "Do you know where the owner of this store is?"

"Ah, Meowstic?" Barie covered his mouth with his bow tie and chuckled, "I believe he might be in the back, dealing with that lovely Delcatty right now. I'll go call him for you, why don't you just sit tight and look around until then?" He looked to Brin and offered her a seat at the table, "Here, you can have my chair."

"Thank you, Barie."

He winked at us and walked to the door that the Delcatty entered through. As he passed through it, I turned my gaze over to all the clothes and garments hung up on shelves and stands. Tapping Blue on the arm, I beckoned for him to follow me for a moment as I wandered around.

Scouring around the place, I found a small box filled with colorful armbands made out of cloth. I took a pink – colored one out of its container and held it up against Blue's wrist. Although I consider pink one of my favorite colors... I had to admit that it doesn't fit my partner at all. Maybe he'd be better matched with a cooler color, like red or green? I tossed the armband back in the box and continued my search.

"What are you looking for, Fée?" Blue asked, sounding amused, "Another ribbon, maybe?"

"No, no," I shook my tail at him as I glanced up at a mannequin modeled after a Ninetales, "I'm just... comparing, that's all. Nothing to worry about!"

The mannequin was wearing a handsome scarf around its neck. It was colored a fiery red, with little yellow patterns weaved around the edges. I stared at it for a moment, imagining it around Blue's neck instead of the fake Ninetales'.

"That scarf costs 3,000 Poké."

I turned around and saw Delcatty walking toward me. A sour look was present on her face, as if something smelly had just fluttered underneath her nose. She jammed herself in bewteen me and the mannequin and sat down, blocking me from seeing the scarf. A nasty smile was on her face as she looked at me.

"Woven with the finest of Mareep wool originating from the northern hills, and lined with Ariados silk. Dyed a pleasant scarlet and gold using the finest of Tamato Berries imported directly from Spring Town..." Delcatty's floppy hat wobbled as she shook her head, "Are you sure you can even afford it?" She said in a condescending voice, "Three thousand... I'm sure that it's much more than your pack there can hold."

"Three... thousand?" The number was boggling to me. In my eyes, all I could see on the mannequin was a simple red scarf. True, it was a very pretty scarf, but to hear that it was worth so much...

"Is that a lot?" Blue asked, rubbing his chin, "Didn't Surety say that those pots I held earlier were around five thousand each?" He pointed a paw at the scarf and added, "So this scarf is worth less than those dirty pots?"

"How disgusting!" Delcatty's expression grew uglier as she recoiled at Blue's words, "How dare you compare this masterpiece of a scarf with that of a pawned pot? Disgusting! Revolting!" She covered her mouth with her paw and glared at my partner, "And for you to speak that... that... _Meowth_'s name! Must you be so uncouth?"

"Surety? You know her?"

"Know her?" Delcatty said with a lofty wave of her paw, "Please, don't ever associate me with such base individuals like that Meowth ever again! Such... disrespect! I feel faint just hearing the two of you speak!"

"That's... that's so rude!"

"Rude? Please, don't be such a child!" She flicked her whip – like tail from side to side, "I am only speaking of the truth! Rudeness means nothing to those who say the truth!"

Even though I wasn't the biggest fan of Surety myself, I couldn't help but feel indignant for her sake. A little heat burned in my cheeks as I glowered at the Delcatty, annoyed and frustrated at the fanciful Pokémon. Even Blue seemed to be losing his patience. I could see his fists clenching, and unclenching over and over again.

"Delcatty."

A small white paw touched Delcatty's side, making the snooty Pokémon flinch and turn. Standing beside Delcatty was a short Pokémon with dark blue fur. A tuft of white poked out from underneath a small neckerchief he wore on his neck. His green eyes stared right at Delcatty, who had fallen silent all of a sudden.

After a moment of silence, the Pokémon began to speak

"My name is Meowstic," the new Pokémon said in a quiet, almost monotone – like voice, "and I apologize for my fiance's rudeness."

"Honey, don't apologi–"

Delcatty's protests were quickly shut up by another chilling stare by Meowstic. She appeared to shrink under his scrutiny, despite being a bit taller than he was.

"You're... the owner of this store?" I said, feeling a little intimidated by him. He turned to me, staring at me with those glassy green eyes of his. Without even blinking once, he nodded and pawed at his neckerchief.

"This is my store, and I am its owner," he said. After another prolonged silence, he added, "good afternoon. Welcome."

"Erm..." I was at a loss for words. It felt like the entire atmosphere in here had gone in an entirely different direction since the owner appeared. I fiddled with the strap of my Explorer's Pack and glanced around, looking for anything that might be able to help me.

"You're interested in this scarf?" He said in that monotone voice of his, "It's 3,000 Poké."

"I – I know that..." I muttered as I looked inside my bag. When I opened it, I saw the edge of Surety's letter poking out from underneath one of my berry pots. All of a sudden, I recalled what she had said to me before we left the Pawnbroker.

"I was introduced to this place by a Meowth that goes by the name of Surety," I said.

Delcatty's face scrunched up again, while Meowstic's eyes widened just a little bit. I took out Surety's letter from my pack and handed it to him. He took the paper away and read it with a stoic look on his face.

"I see," he said, "it has been a while. Surety..."

"Honey, you can't still be thinking of that boorish Meowth, can you?" Delcatty hissed, "Not when you have _me_ around, right? Honey!"

Meowstic turned and gave Delcatty another emotionless glare, forcing her to cringe and shut up. He took Surety's letter and tucked it into his neckerchief before turning back to me.

"3,000 Poké." He said, "That's the cost of the scarf."

"T – that's the same as before!"

"That's correct," Meowstic said, "three thousand. No more, no less. This is the price of that scarf. We are a business, we are here to make profits. If you cannot afford to pay for it, then I am sorry."

He had a solid point, and it wasn't something I could argue with. In the first place, it was strange for me to even think about buying something from a store here... there was just no way I could've ever afforded shopping in this high – class district. With a forlorn sigh, I hung my head low and decided to give up on that scarf for now.

"Fée?" I heard Blue call out my name. His paw patted me on my head as I looked up at him. Rubbing my head, he grinned at me and said, "Hey, if we can't get it now. We can always get it later. Right?"

"I guess..."

Was it selfish of me to want to have it now? I have no idea how long it would take for me to save up that much money... and I don't want to make Blue wait for a gift. A part of me thought back to Xatu and Surety's store. Suddenly, pawning off items for money became a very attractive idea.

Ahh, no! I can't. It's... it's not like I have anything to sell anyway...

Shaking my head, I threw away any dark intention I had about selling my belongings. I reached up and pulled Blue's paw down to my mouth and gave him a quick nibble.

"You're right. We'll just come back some other day when we can afford it," I said as I let go of his arm. "there's no rush."

I turned to Meowstic and bowed my head out of respect, "Thank you for your time," I said, "we'll be back eventually for that scarf. If you don't mind holding onto it for us for the time being, I would really appreciate it!"

"You're asking too much!" Delcatty sneered, "What if someone comes in and buys it right then and ther–!"

"I'll reserve it for you," Meowstic said as he held a paw over Delcatty's mouth, "as thanks for delivering me this letter. When you have enough money, come back and we can do business."

"Thank you, Meowstic!"

An eager feeling was flooding through my heart. That scarf... I'll definitely be able to get it one day. For Blue. For my partner!

Smiling like a fool, I turned around and grabbed onto Blue's paw and pulled him away from the mannequin with me. I was enthusiastic to leave and start planning out how I should start saving from now on. Brin had sequestered herself at the little glass table we saw earlier, and was watching the steaming bowl with interest. I was about to walk over to her and tell her that we're gonna go, but all of a sudden...

_Wham!_

_Wham!_

Two identical sounds rang out simultaneously, one ahead of me and one behind me. Brin was jarred out of her seat, leaping out and ducking behind a shelf out of surprise. I didn't know where to look first, in front of me or what was happening behind me.

"I'm leaving! Don't follow me!"

"Ah! It's you! That guy from the Battle Royale!"

A fluffy gray – furred Pokémon rushed out in between Blue and I, knocking us away from each other as it charged through the store before disappearing out the front door. A second later, another loud slam rang out through the store as Barie reappeared from the backdoor. He had a dripping wet tablecloth slapped on his face for some reason.

"Hang on, wait!" He pulled the tablecloth off his face with his ribbon as he rushed after the strange, gray thing.

"Espurr!" Delcatty held her paw over her mouth and shook her head, "What has... where's he going?!" She broke away from Meowstic and ran up to the front door as well. She turned to Meowstic with wide eyes and said, "I'm going after them, honey. I'll be back later!"

"Delcatty, wait!"

Meowstic's shout fell on deaf ears as the front door slammed shut one more time. Like a gust of wind, Delcatty disappeared out into the town, leaving a stunned, confused silence behind.

"I... did I interrupt something?"

An unfamiliar girl's voice was the one that broke the silence. We turned our heads over to the front of the store, where another Pokémon was standing. She stood on two legs, just like Blue and Brin. A coat of loose, yellow fur covered her body, except her arms and legs, which were red. She twitched her two thick whiskers at us and frowned.

"Well, whatever it was, it doesn't involve me." She pounded her right fist into her left palm, making a loud clapping noise, "That didn't seem very interesting anyway."

"B – Blue, we should get going," I spun my head toward Blue and shouted, "Barie might be in trouble! We should chase after him!"

"Right," Blue said, nodding at me. He looked over to Brin and waved his paw, beckoning her over. The Braixen crept out from behind the shelves and joined us as we started to make our way over to the front door.

"Hold it," the new Pokémon commanded. She stuck her right arm out in front of the door like a gate, blocking us from leaving the store. She took her other arm and shoved Blue in the chest with her palm, pushing him back and away from the door.

"What the?" Blue stumbled back a few paces before regaining his balance. As he straightened himself back up though, the Pokémon rushed up and grabbed him by his collar with both paws. He let out a strained cough as she lifted him off his feet.

"Blue!"

"B – Blue...!"

Brin and I both rushed over to try and help our friend, but the strange, hostile Pokémon turned around and sent us both a chilling glare. An invisible wave of... _something_ slammed into us, freezing us in place and preventing us from moving.

"Don't think I've forgotten about you, blue – boy!" She snarled at Blue, sticking her face close to his, "Oh what a lucky coincidence that I'd find you here... lucky indeed! Oh... how I seethe when I recall that day... the day you defeated me in that Battle Royale!"

"Who... what? I don't rememb – geeh!"

"You don't remember?" She tightened her grasp on his collar and lifted him up even higher, "Such disrespect! Disrespect indeed! How can you forget the face of your opponent?!"

With a snarl, she hurled him onto the ground as if he was a rag doll. Before Blue could scramble back onto his feet though, she stamped down on his chest with her foot.

"Very well... then I'll have to beat the image of my face deep into your mind and soul!" She jabbed a thumb at her own chest and announced, "Remember this! I, Feyley, the Mienfoo from Mount Travail, challenges you to a rematch!"


	29. I'll make you unable to forget me!

**•   
Chapter 27**

**"I'll make you unable to forget me!"**

* * *

A tense and prolonged silence blew through the store. Blue, being pinned down by the angry Mienfoo, could only communicate his confusion to her through stunned gaping and muddled gargling. Fée and Brin, on the other hand, found themselves immobilized by Feyley's cold glare. Unable to move, unable to do anything except watch their friend be abused by this stranger.

"Well?" Scowling, Feyley glared down at the wincing Riolu beneath her, "Do you accept my challenge? Answer me!"

Blue opened his mouth, but the only sound that came from his lips was a muffled gurgle. He stuck out his tongue and coughed, his right paw was gesturing toward the foot she had pressed down on his chest.

"You're choking him!" Fée cried out, "Your foot! Get it off of him!"

The Mienfoo shot Fée and Brin a quick glance before shifting her foot off Blue's chest and onto the floor. Freed from her pin, Blue opened his mouth wide and sucked in lungfuls of air. He placed his right paw on his chest, panting, catching his breath.

"Such weakness, such weakness indeed!" Not content with letting the Riolu rest, Feyley reached down and grabbed onto Blue's collar. His eyes were jarred open as the Mienfoo plopped herself down on his belly, pinning him down against the floor with her rear. She leaned her face in close to his, giving the poor Riolu an eyeful of her furious expression

"To think that I was defeated by the likes of you!" The tips of their noses were grinding each other as she continued to shove Blue's head farther and farther backward with her intense glare. "It shames me to my very soul, it does!"

"I don't... I told you..." Uncomfortable with how close she was getting, Blue turned his face away from hers and grunted out, "I don't remember a thing about what you're saying! I really don't!"

Feyley's eyes narrowed as her lips curled into a furious scowl. She removed her paws from the Riolu's collar and folded her arms across her chest. For a moment, Blue thought that he was allowed to go free. However, those hopes were quickly dashed when he realized that the Mienfoo was still pinning him down by sitting on his gut.

"Our match was only two days ago!" Feyley hissed, "How empty must your head be to have forgotten something so recent? Your memory must be worse than a Slowpoke's!"

"Well I won't deny that my memory is a little shoddy, bu –geh!" Blue's remark was cut short as he felt a pair of paws clamp onto his cheeks, forcing his eyes and mouth wide open. Feyley slammed her forehead against his, making a dull clonking noise as she filled his vision with her angered face.

"Very well..." Feyley said at a slow pace, taking her time to lace every syllable with a thick layer of fury, "if you wont even give our first meeting the respect it deserves, then I shall refuse to listen to your complaints!" She let go of his cheeks and stood up. The Mienfoo glared down at the coughing Riolu from high above. She jabbed a finger at his face, pressing it against his nose.

"I will not ask for you to accept my challenge! For we _will_ battle once more! And I _will_ remind you of our first duel!"

"Eh?!" Before he could even begin to process what was going on, the Mienfoo began to manhandle the poor Riolu again. This time, she wrapped her arms around his waist and hoisted him off the floor. In a single swift motion, she yanked Blue off the floor and tossed him onto her shoulder. Utterly stunned and confused, Blue could only stare blankly at the Mienfoo's back legs as she carried him around the store as if he were a bundle of hay.

The Riolu struggled against her grasp, but Feyley's grip was far stronger than he had expected. His entire upper body – arms and all – were bound by the Mienfoo. His head was beginning to feel faint from being held upside down as well, leaving him with a debilitating sense of sluggishness forming in his limbs.

He was trapped. Captured.

"Blue!" Feeling was finally returning to Fée's extremities. Despite the lingering numbness in her legs causing her to wince with every step, the hardy Eevee forced herself to trudge over to the Mienfoo that was keeping her partner captive. However, Feyley didn't even turn to acknowledge her. Instead, the Mienfoo was facing the owner of the store – Meowstic.

"Mr. Meowstic, I've received word earlier that my order has been completed?"

Meowstic – despite what had just happened before him – still wore a stoic, composed expression on his face. His eyes were pointed at the front door of the store, but he quickly shifted his gaze over to Feyley upon being addressed. He adjusted his neckerchief and gave her a terse nod.

"Yes, it had been completed before you arrived," Meowstic said. He pointed at a large, white – colored box that was lying atop the store counter. "you can take it with you once we've sorted out the issue of payment."

"P – payment?" Feyley said, looking startled. She looked down at her feet as she fidgeted with her whiskers. She glanced around the store while wearing a worried expression. "H – Hariyama didn't say anything about me having to pay..."

"Hariyama?" Fée's ears twitched as she picked up that familiar name. A small bell rang in her head, irking something at the back of her mind. However, she dismissed her rising curiosity and returned to sneaking over to the three of them.

Now within paw – distance, Fée reached out and tried to grab a hold of Blue's dangling paws with her own. However, right before they could touch each other, Feyley suddenly swung around and moved Blue out of his partner's reach.

"C – could you bill it to the Guildmaster?" Feyley stammered as she nervously fiddled with her whiskers, "I'm currently lacking in funds at the moment, having just joined the guild and all... and my first stipend doesn't come until next week..."

Meowstic tapped his neckerchief with his paw, thinking. After a moment of silence, he nodded and said, "Very well. Considering that it was an order made by your guild in the first place, I will send the bill to your Guildmaster instead." He closed his eyes and bowed, "Whatever happens afterward, is your issue."

Once more, Fée neared her partner and attempted to rescue him. The two Wigglytuff's Guild members reached out and attempted to grab onto each others' paws. However, at the very instant their paws touched each other, Blue's body was suddenly shunted upward. Like a pair of flails, Blue's heavy paws went flying up – accidentally smacking Fée's paws away and knocking her down onto her rump.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Meowstic!" Feyley said as she returned the storekeeper's bow with her own deep, respectful bow. "You have no idea how grateful I am! Grateful indeed!"

Fée sat on the floor of the store, dazed from being tossed away all of a sudden. She shook her head and tried to quash down the feeling of stinging numbness in her legs with willpower. However, by the time she managed to regain feeling in her limbs again, Feyley had already grabbed onto the box on the counter and slung it underneath her other arm.

"Thank you, Mr. Meowstic!" Feyley shouted as she raced over to the front door, "I will forever remember your assistance! Farewell!"

"Mm." Meowstic patted his neckerchief and bowed as the Mienfoo slid through the entrance – with both of her presents in tow – and disappeared into the town.

"W – wait!" Fée cried after them. Before she could even take a single step toward the door, her legs gave out and she collapsed back onto the ground.

"Ugh... what did that Mienfoo do?" Fée groaned, rubbing her aching chin, "It was like she suddenly froze my entire body with a single glare..."

As she struggled to stand back up again, Fée felt a small hand press onto her back. Fée craned her neck and saw that Brin had knelt down beside her; the Braixen's eyes were closed, and she seemed to be murmuring something. Before Fée could ask her what she was doing, a gentle warmth spread out from her fingertips and spread throughout Fée's body.

"Brin, you..." Fée felt awed by the immense heat that was searing up inside of her. In an instant, all the numbness in her body was blown away by Brin's strange ability, and was replaced with an energetic, pulsating strength.

With this new found energy burning inside of her, Fée pulled herself off the ground and stood triumphantly on her four paws. She turned to Brin and gave her a quick nod – which the Braixen returned with one of her own.

"Are you alright?" Fée glanced down at Brin's legs, which were shivering a bit.

Brin shook her head and gave Fée a small thumbs up.

"I'm sorry Brin," Fée said, frowning. "It looks like we're going to have to postpone visiting the library for a bit." She frowned and tapped her chin with her paw, "I want to go help Barie too... but I don't want to just leave Blue alone with that Mienfoo. Who knows what happened between those two?"

Sighing, the Eevee shook her head and turned back to Brin. "Worrying about it now wont help anyone. Brin, let's go get him back, and then we can worry other things later. Okay?"

Brin frowned and nodded along with Fée. She clenched her right hand and held it over her chest as she trudged over and stood beside the Eevee. After taking Fée's pain as her own, it felt like her legs were covered in a thick layer of spiny nettles. However, to the young Braixen, such a thing wasn't enough to dishearten her. Especially not when her friend was just kidnapped in front of her very eyes!

"If the two of you are leaving now," Meowstic's stoic voice came drifting over to the hyped up pair, drawing both of their attentions toward him. He held up his paw to his neckerchief and continued, "then I suggest you do so quickly."

"Why didn't you stop them?" Fée asked, feeling a little annoyed. "She was right there, taking my friend away!"

"It was none of my business," he said in a curt tone. "whether or not you regain your friend or make amends with that lady is your issue." He held out his paw to Fée and added, "However, I would not mind telling you where she might be headed."

"There's no need," Fée snapped back, averting her head at the store owner. "she's a part of Machoke's Guild, isn't she? I overheard her mention Hariyama earlier, and I'm definitely certain he's a member of that guild."

"That's correct."

"Then all we have to do is make sure we make it there before she does!" Fée put on a small smile and tapped the ribbon on her ear, "And I know just how to do that."

The Eevee turned to face Brin and nodded, "Come on Brin! I'll lead the way!"

"Mhm!"

* * *

"You've been poring over that map for a while now. Are we lost?"

"Quiet."

"You know, my partner's pretty knowledgeable about where everything is in this town. If we head back now, we could probably ask her to take us to wherever it is you're looking for."

"I said be quiet! I'm concentrating!"

"Can you at least let me sit on the bench with you? I promise I wont run away, I'm getting a headache from hanging down like this..."

"No."

Blue let out a defeated sigh and let his head flop back down. While the Mienfoo had located a comfortable bench somewhere in a less – populated part of town, her Riolu captive was still resigned to being draped over her shoulder like a particularly fuzzy pauldron. With his arms firmly constrained by Feyley, there wasn't much Blue could do other than stare at the curious passerby wandering around behind the bench.

In the meantime, the Mienfoo was busy trying to make heads or tails out of the large piece of parchment in her paws. She spun it left, right and upside down – all the while wearing a frustrated look on her face.

"Ergh!" Her patience wearing thin, Feyley folded the paper in half and threw it onto the bench. Clutching her face, she grumbled out loud to herself, "This map is worthless!" She leaned her head back against the bench, glaring up at the sky as she continued to gripe to herself.

"Why must this town be such a maze? If this were the village back on Travail, I would've found my way back home in a blink of an eye!"

"Like I said..." Blue straightened out his back and raised his head over the top of the bench, "if we head back to that store, we can go get my partner and she can figure out where you want to go. Fée's smart like that."

"Rrgh..." annoyed, Feyley took her other arm and shoved Blue's head back down. The Riolu let out a quiet sigh and shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm just giving you a suggestion..." Blue grumbled, shaking his head, "what are you gonna do then? Just sit here until the sun goes down?"

"I have half a mind to start our rematch right now if you continue to prattle in my ear like this!"

"Speaking of that," as she brought up the topic, Blue pulled his head back up and turned to look at the grouchy Mienfoo, "why are you so fixated on fighting me anyway? Is it really that big of a deal?"

"Of course it is!" Feyley shot back as she spun around to glare back at him, "Do you have any idea how insulted I felt when I finally awoke, and couldn't find my erstwhile opponent anywhere?"

"Hrm..." Blue closed his eyes and tilted his head to the side, thinking. "...opponent... huh..."

"You... do you honestly not remember our battle?" Feyley asked, her voice hushed, "You, the first Pokémon that I dueled during my first foray into this foreign world... it was only two days ago, do you truly not remember?"

Blue noticed that her voice had softened, and that her grip on his body had loosened just a slight bit. Taking a gamble that she wouldn't get mad at him, he pulled his right arm out from Feyley's grasp and scratched his cheek with his paw.

"Two days ago?" Blue muttered as he tapped his chin against the back of the bench. "That was the first day that I spent here in Treasure Town too..." he paused to gather his thoughts together. As he closed his eyes, the faces of his friends came fluttering into his mind.

"I remember meeting a lot of Pokémon that day. Xatu, Azurill, Loudred and Sunflora..." Blue recited. "I remember meeting Rapta, and flying with him over to some mountain to fight some criminal..."

"You what?" Feyley shouted. "You rode on the third – in – command's back? Why? How?"

As Blue opened his mouth to reply, Feyley quickly slapped her paw over her face and shook her head. "No, that's not important right now! What is important is what you remember! Is that really all you can recall of that day?"

"To be honest, nothing else really sticks out in my mind–" he cut himself off as a cloying sense of dread washed through his insides. A cold sweat streamed down his back as he turned toward the Mienfoo, his mouth gaping and his eyes wide.

In that instant, he realized that he said something very, very wrong. The Pokémon carrying him was beginning to emanate waves of strong anger once more, and the arm she had around his gut had begun to constrict again, forcing him to wince his eyes.

"Just how can you not recall something as important as our battle?!" Feyley roared. She grabbed onto the Riolu's torso with both of her paws and pulled him off her shoulder. A muted squeak escaped Blue's mouth as she planted him on the ground beneath her. He tried to sit up, but the Mienfoo pinned him down by sitting on his chest.

"Personal space!" Blue choked out, but Feyley just jammed his mouth shut by clamping her paw over his muzzle.

"Your memory is as faulty as a Cubchoo's nose!" Feyley snarled, "Are you toying with me? I refuse to believe that somebody can have a head as empty as yours!"

_Thunk!_

"Guh!" Blue winced in pain as she knocked her forehead against his again. He planted his paw in the space between their faces and prized them apart. "Look, I'm remembering as hard as I can! You're really not helping me by hitting me on the head like this!

"Ergh!" Frustrated, the Mienfoo released her grip on Blue's torso, letting him fall back onto the ground. Getting off of him, Feyley sat back down on the bench, and fell silent with a wide frown on her face.

Finally freed from her grasp, Blue leaned back and stretched out his aching body. He threw a few practice punches and kicks at the air in front of him to get rid of the numbness laden in his limbs. Once he was satisfied, he sat down on the bench next to the grousing Feyley.

"Are there more than one Riolu in this town?" Feyley wondered aloud, sighing as she rested her face on the palm of her paw. "Was it really you who fought me that day, or was it another Riolu?"

"More than one Riolu... huh?" Blue mimicked Feyley's pose, planting his chin atop his paw, "I dunno. I doubt it though, all I ever hear about Riolu from others are bad things." He chuckled and shrugged, "Maybe I'm the only Riolu here because all the other ones want to avoid hearing stuff like that!"

He lifted his head off his paw and leaned back on the bench, grinning at his own joke.

"Why do you say that?"

Blue turned and saw that Feyley was staring at him with a confused expression on her face. She tilted her head to the side, and folded her arms across her chest.

"Why do I say what?"

_Thock!_

"Ow!"

Blue winced as Feyley withdrew her paw from his head. Her chop wasn't all that painful to him, but it still left enough of an impression that he could feel a small bump forming at the top of his skull. Grumbling, he rubbed his aching head while the Mienfoo continued to stare at him.

"What do you mean by 'all I ever hear about Riolu are bad things?'" She clarified. "I'm curious. Curious indeed."

"I have no idea."

_Thock!_

"Ow! Cut it out!" Blue snarled as he leapt off the bench, clutching his head with both of his paws. "I'm being honest! I really don't know!" He rubbed the growing lump on his head as he grumbled, "You're going to split my head into two pieces if you keep chopping me like that!"

Feyley twitched her whiskers and sneered, "Good! Then we can see just how empty the inside of your head is!"

"Oh, very funny," Blue retorted.

Feyley let out a great big sigh and planted her chin back on her palm. Frustrated and annoyed, all she could think about was just how irritating her so – called opponent was. Was this idiotic and forgetful Riolu really the Pokémon that defeated her during that big battle festival? She just couldn't believe it.

How absurd! How absurd indeed!

Blue scratched the back of his head. He just didn't know what to say to the angry girl. To him, speaking to her felt like walking through a field filled with pits. Anything he said might as well be like throwing himself off a cliff, and hoping for the best.

He glanced over behind him. Although he didn't pay attention to where they were going, Blue figured that he could probably make his way back to Wigglytuff's Guild at the very least. Of course, going around the maze – like Treasure Town would've been much easier with his trusted partner around, but as of this moment, he couldn't rely on her.

But as he entertained the notion of leaving, the Mienfoo on the bench let out a loud, depressed sigh, which drew his attention back to her.

Truth is, he did know what Feyley was talking about. The Battle Royale, Machoke's festival of strength. He remembered being coerced into fighting in it for Xatu, and he remembered coming out of it in a bad shape. As for why he didn't want to tell her that he knew, it was because he didn't want to fight again. Especially not after he just got his leg fixed.

However, by the time he had managed to recall that event, he had already been thrown into a much more difficult situation. He thought about coming clean and admitting to his lies, but one look at the grumpy Mienfoo's face warned him that it wasn't the best of ideas. He was worried about his partner, his friend, and even Barie.

Sighing, Blue shook his head. He had to stay though. After all, he just promised her that he wouldn't run if she let him go. Not only that, it wouldn't sit right with him if he just up and left after making her so mad with his 'clever plan.' No. He had to make amends somehow.

"Hey," Blue sat back down on the bench and tapped Feyley on the shoulder. She opened one eye and glared back at him.

"What is it?"

"I'm sorry," Blue muttered, fiddling around with the strap of his bag. "I'm sorry that I can't... remember our battle. And I'm sorry for being... um, empty – headed."

He placed his paw on his chest and put on a small smile, "I'm know that this battle we.. probably had is really important to you, and that you're really, really mad that I can't remember it." He paused to see if the Mienfoo would reply. She didn't, but continued to stare at him nonetheless.

"If you want, I can accept that rematch challenge you wanted," Blue offered. "if it makes you feel any better, I wouldn't mind fighting you again." He grinned and tapped his head, "Who knows? Maybe if we end up slugging it out, I might remember a thing or two about our first battle."

No response.

"So how about it?" Nervous, Blue decided to take his words one step farther. He thrust his right arm at her, clenching his paw into a fist. "This time, I'll challenge _you_ to a fight!"

Feyley continued to stare at him, wordless. Her expression was one of confusion, or perhaps disbelief.

"...pfft..."

Blue's ears twitched as he heard an odd sound. He dropped his paw and tilted his head, curious as to what it was.

"Pfff... haha..." Feyley had doubled over, clutching her paw over her face. She turned away from Blue, shuddering and shivering in her seat. Then, right as Blue reached over to see what was wrong, the Mienfoo threw her head back and exploded in laughter.

"Haha! Hahahahaha!"

Blue leapt back, startled by her sudden change in demeanor. Where there used to be a grouchy frown before was now a wide, gleeful smile. The Mienfoo continued to revel in her laughter for a while, drawing confused and startled stares from the passerby around them.

"Hoo... hee... hee..." shaking her head, Feyley draped her back over the bench and took in several deep breaths to calm herself. With all the laughter gone from her body, she clutched her head and staggered onto her feet, tipsy and wobbling. She meandered her way over to Blue and grabbed his shoulders before jamming her face right up into his, giving him a good look at her grinning face.

"Very well!" She shouted into his ear, "I accept that offer!" Feyley separated herself from Blue and spun around on one foot. Then, with a swift flick of her leg, she shoved her foot mere inches before the Riolu's face.

"I'll make you remember our first match," she said, grinning. "no– I'll do more than that! I'll make you unable to forget me! Unable indeed!"

The eager Mienfoo lowered her foot and grabbed Blue by the collar. She yanked him close and repositioned her paws around his waist. Blue didn't even bother to struggle as Feyley threw him over her shoulder once more.

"I can walk, you know."

"Quiet!" Feyley, basking in her good mood, skipped over to the bench and picked up her package and map. She unfurled her map and pored over it while humming a gleeful tune.

"Aha!" Hardly a second later, Feyley let out a cheerful giggle as she folded her map up again. She threw her head up high, looking up at the dimming sky above. She raised up her right arm and jabbed it up into the air, pointing at the tallest building around them. "That's where we should be going!"

"Oh?" Blue edged his head around Feyley's shoulder, trying to see what she was pointing at. "Does that mean you figured out how to get back?"

"No," a blunt response came as he reply, followed by a paw pushing his head back down. "this town's too much of a maze for me, and this map useless. Instead, I have devised a much faster way to get back home. A much faster way indeed!"

"A faster wa– _aaay_?!"

A tremendous force was pressed onto the back of Blue's head, almost making him bite his own tongue in surprise. As he stared down through bugged – out eyes, he saw the ground beneath them shrink as they flew higher and higher into the air.

"Why walk the streets, when we can take to the skies?"

After planting her feet on the flat roof of the nearest building, Feyley put on a wide grin on her face. She spun around, holding her paw above her eyes and scanning the horizon. The setting sun had basked the entire town in a glorious golden glow, illuminating the many blocky buildings and winding roads surrounding them like a Lanturn's light shining beneath the sea.

"There it is!" Feyley announced to her green – faced companion. "I have spotted my guild!"

"That's great," Blue grumbled as he held his paws over his mouth. "can you go a little slower this time? I think I can feel my lunch going back up my throa– _aaaagh_!"

He clamped both of his paws over his mouth as Feyley rocketed off her perch. The giggling Mienfoo sailed through the dusk, leaping from building to building, from rooftop to rooftop, with a screaming Riolu in tow. Feyley gave little care to anything, and everything else around her as she soared over the top of the town to her destination.

Case in point, a flock of flying Starly screamed and scattered as she plowed her way through them. A wandering Zorua was knocked onto his rear as the forceful Mienfoo landed beside him. Papers and envelopes swirled around Feyley as she prepared to leap again.

"What the–?!" the Zorua shouted, outraged. But Feyley paid him little mind. Instead, she just rocketed off in a maelstrom of white and paper.

"Sorry!" Blue hollered back at the seething courier and tittering Starly. He wasn't sure if his apology even reached their ears, as even he couldn't hear his own voice over the wooshing wind.

–

After several harrowing minutes, Feyley and her green – faced luggage reached their destination. With a triumphant air, she flipped off the building and landed back on the streets with a great big smile on her face. On the other hand, her Riolu baggage wore an expression that was the exact opposite of hers.

The two of them stood before a sheer cliff wall, rising high above them like a great bastion of stone. Long, flat slats of wood were nailed against the wall in a haphazard fashion, while gravel and dust lay littered all around the base, giving the area a very desolate feel. Above all else though, the most eye catching aspect of this cliff was the huge, rounded boulder lying against it.

"Blegh..." Blue groaned as the Mienfoo let him flop off her shoulder and collapsed onto the ground in a fuzzy blue lump. He clutched his belly and mouth with his paws while as he struggled to keep his innards inside of him.

"What was it that you claimed earlier? That you rode on the third – in – command's back?" Feyley jeered, prodding the twitching Riolu with her foot. "How weak must your guts be if you can't even handle a few jumps and jolts?"

"That's... that's different," Blue gurgled back as he swatted Feyley's toe away. "Rapta's flight was smooth... and fun. What you just did was just horrible... and painful... blegh..."

Clicking her tongue, Feyley reached down and yanked Blue off the ground by his collar, pulling the nauseous Riolu back onto his feet.

"I feel as though you're going to rip my collar off by the end of the day..." Blue griped, brushing her paws off of him. Turning away from the Mienfoo, he closed his eyes as he tried to alleviate his rumbling insides with several deep breaths. As he calmed himself down, he felt a cold breeze rush past him, making him shudder a bit.

The Riolu wrapped his arms around himself, shielding his chest from the icy draft. He set his jaw tight, clenching his teeth together to stop them from clattering from the cold.

"...lu..!"

Blue opened one of his eyes. He thought he had heard someone shouting at them. He turned around, thinking that the Mienfoo behind him was calling for him. However, Feyley wasn't paying attention to him at all. Instead she appeared to be fumbling around with the large boulder that was laid against the cliff wall.

"...iolu!"

Spinning back around, the Riolu pulled away one of his arms from his chest and held it over his ear. Now unprotected from the cold, he shuddered as he listened around for whoever it was that was calling. From the distance, he could just barely make out the sound of feet hitting the ground.

"Bwahah! I knew it! It is that Riolu!"

"Eh?"

Blue's eyes snapped wide open, not out of surprise or clarity, but because something fast – something extremely sweaty – had charged right into him. A thick, powerful arm wrapped itself around Blue's neck, pulling him into a painful choke hold. A horrid stench wafted into the Riolu's nose, searing up the insides of his nostrils. The smell was so painful, so horrific that he almost fainted on the spot.

"G – Guildmaster Machoke...?!" Blue gasped out.

"In the flesh!" the Guildmaster grinned at the Riolu trapped underneath his armpit. "I cannot believe you came and sought us out on your own! So you changed your mind after all, eh? Bwahahaha!"

Not only was Blue's nose being assaulted by a burning stench, his ears were being blown out by an explosive voice. With his ears ringing, his nose burning, and his mind frazzled by the awful combination of the two, it was a testament to his willpower that he could still remain conscious.

"Hey! Don't go falling asleep now! Not when we've just been reunited! Bwaha!"

Blue opened his mouth and released a choking, gurgling sound. In response, Machoke reared his head back and chortled. As he laughed into the sky, a large hand grabbed the musclebound Pokémon on the shoulder. A large, bulky Pokémon stood behind Machoke. His eyes narrowed, and he furrowed his brow.

"Guildmaster, I believe that's because you're strangling him," Hariyama said. "I recommend releasing his neck before he faints."

"Nonsense!" Bearing a bright, wide grin on his face, Machoke spun around to face his second in command. While a paling, gasping Blue swung around with him, jammed in between the Guildmaster's tree trunk – like muscles and rock hard pectorals.

"A strong Pokémon like Blue here is just like me!" Machoke raised up his other arm and flexed his bicep. "A small hug like this is nothing!"

While trapped within the Guildmaster's clutches, Blue shook his head and shot desperate looks at Hariyama. He mouthed 'help' and 'save me' to the Guildmaster's second – in – command.

"If it was just a hug, then there would be no problem." Hariyama sighed and slapped his hand over his face. "However, I believe you're going too far, Guildmaster."

Hariyama's large hand slid down half an inch, revealing the steel – like sheen of his eyes. While Machoke was preoccupied with reveling in his own amusement, Hariyama lowered himself close to the ground. His hands reached out to his sides, one against his wide hips, and one pointed out toward Machoke.

"I apologize in advance for this, Guildmaster."

"Bwahahah– eh?"

_Fwumph!_

In a blink of an eye, Hariyama thrust his arm forward at a ridiculous speed. His palm struck Machoke in the face, knocking his chin up into the air. Struck dumb by his subordinate's sudden assault, Machoke's grip on Blue loosened. His eyes glinting, Hariyama took this chance and sent his second arm zooming toward the Riolu's limp body.

_Woosh!_

Like a bar of soap, Blue slid out from Machoke's clutches and into Hariyama's wide palm. Now that he was safe, Hariyama put the poor, panting Riolu back down on the ground.

"T – thanks..." Blue managed to gasp out in between labored breaths. Hariyama nodded and patted him on the shoulder before placing his large form in between Machoke and Blue.

"Bwahahaha! That was a dynamic slap!" Still laughing, Machoke lowered his head and beamed at Hariyama. "Startlingly fast as always my friend! You sure got me good with that one, didn't see it coming at all!" He held his right arm beneath his chest and flexed it, while Hariyama and Blue both let out loud sighs.

"Honorable Guildmaster! Master Hariyama!"

Both Machoke and Hariyama's heads turned to Feyley, who rushed up beside Machoke. She clasped her paws before her chest and bowed her head before them.

"Oh! If it isn't the Princess!" Chortling, Machoke slapped Feyley's back and grinned. "You're out late tonight! Don't you usually hit the hay early?"

"E – eh?!" Feyley shook her head and frowned, "I – I don't sleep this early, Guildmaster! Y – you're mistaken!"

"Oh?" Machoke grinned, "Then was I mistaken when I saw you stealing some shuteye around this time yesterday? You were snoozing so soundly in the storage room, I didn't have the heart to wake you! Bwaha!"

Blushing, Feyley covered her face with her paws and shook her head.

"I believe she is out because of the errand I gave her earlier," Hariyama said, patting the Mienfoo on the shoulder.. His eyes fell upon the white box clutched beneath Feyley's arm. "I see you've acquired it successfully, Feyley."

"Y – yes!" Feyley shouted, throwing her arms in the air. "It was a difficult journey, but I've accomplished my task, Master!"

"You've done well, my student." Hariyama patted the young girl on the head, drawing a small blush and smile from the Mienfoo. "We'll talk more about your new training regimen in the morning. For now, why don't you retire to your room and call it day?"

Feyley's whiskers and tail shot straight up as she pressed her paw against her chest. "Master Hariyama! I will not sleep early tonight!" She announced. "I will not indeed! Instead, I have a request of you and the Guildmaster!"

"Hm? A request? What is it?"

"Master, I humbly request the use of the training room for a duel!"

"A duel?" Hariyama glanced over at Machoke, who shrugged in return. "With whom? Monferno? Pancham? ...The Guildmaster?"

"T – the Guildmaster?" Feyley's eyes flew wide as she cringed at the thought of fighting her Guildmaster. Panicked, she shook her head and stammered, "N – no! Not with the Guildmaster!"

"Bwahaha!"

Hariyama raised an eyebrow, "If it isn't the Guildmaster, then who is it?"

Taking care to leave a wide berth between her and the laughing Machoke, Feyley sidled along the cliff wall and over to where Blue was resting. She grabbed onto the Riolu's arms and hoisted him back up, eliciting an annoyed groan from the aching boy.

"It is this Riolu that I wish to fight!" Feyley announced. "For I wish to absolve myself of the shame I felt when he defeated me two days ago!"

Machoke let out a roaring laugh and strode over to Feyley. He held up his hand again, ready to pat her on the back. "Princess! You're still obsessed about that little defeat? Bwahaha! You're cuter than I thought!"

With a hearty chuckle, he swung his hand at her. However, this time he only swatted at the air, as the Mienfoo saw it coming and hurried away at the nick of time.

"I – I'm not obsessed!" Feyley stammered back. "I just want to redeem myself after that dismal display back then! That's all!"

"Bwaha! Dynamic!" Machoke dropped onto a knee and flexed both of his arms. "I like your drive, Princess! Seeking a match this late in the day, just to regain your honor? I like it! You can use the training room until your heart's delight! I approve!"

"Hold on," Hariyama pushed the Guildmaster out of the way and stood before Feyley. "Blue. I recall on the day that you ran away from the Guildmaster and I that you were very heavily injured." He held out his hand and pointed at different parts of Blue's body, "Bruises here, cuts there... I have no intention of belittling you, but you were in a very bad shape that night."

Blue motioned to reply, but was cut off by a peal of laughter from Machoke.

"Bwaha! But take a gander at him now, Hariyama!" He held out his hand at Blue and grinned. "Not a single scratch on him! No bruise, no cuts, nothing at all!" He puffed out his chest and planted his hands on his hips, looking proud for Blue. "He is just like I am! In the glowing, shining prime of our youth! No wound, no harm can keep us down for long!"

Exasperated, Hariyama averted his gaze from the flexing, posing Guildmaster. However, he still glanced over at Blue, scanning over his wound – free body. Curiosity and suspicion flitted across his face.

"Erm, well..." Blue coughed into his paw. With regards to the promise he made to Mismagius and Brin, he didn't want to just go and tell Hariyama the reason behind his miraculous recovery. He glanced at Machoke, who was still admiring his own biceps and making odd poses with his arms and pecs. Having no better idea in mind, Blue held out his arms and copied the Guildmaster's motions.

"It's exactly what he said!" Blue said, flexing his arms. "I – erm – I recovered because I was... young! Glowing and shining and all that! Yeah!"

A sense of shame and idiocy flooded through the Riolu as he posed with his arms beside his head. The utter embarrassment he felt was further worsened by the approving nod that the Guildmaster was giving him.

"What in the world are you doing, Riolu?" Feyley slapped Blue upside the head. "You look ridiculous!"

"Guh..." the sense of shame at enacting Machoke's poses stung more than Feyley's slap.

"Very well," Hariyama shook his head and walked over to the boulder behind Feyley and Blue. "perhaps we can hasten your training regimen to tonight, Feyley. Come, let's head inside."

"Bwahah!" Machoke took his place beside Hariyama and placed his hand on the boulder. "This will be fun! Some entertainment after that dull, dull Guildmasters' meeting earlier!"

* * *

When you hear of adventuring or exploration guilds from outside of Treasure Town, most of the time you'll probably hear about Wigglytuff's Guild. After all, they're the most well known, and the most famous. Even Pokémon that only hold a passing interest in exploring would have heard about them. Even outside of the frontier, they're that famous!

But what about the rest of the guilds here in town? Of which there are many of course – just not as well known or as famous as Wigglytuff's. That's not saying they're not as important as them, of course! That would be silly!

Out of the hundreds and hundreds of different guilds here in town, there are some of them that reach or even equal Wigglytuff's in terms of fame and notability here in Treasure Town, but aren't quite as well known outside of it.

However, out of all these hundreds of guilds, three stand out as the most successful. Wigglytuff's, Kadabra's, and Machoke's.

"Oh!"

Brin interrupted my long lecture by pointing her finger at the doorway. Hovering above the large entrance archway, hewn from natural stone and supported by wooden beams, was an eye – catching, almost comically large sign. Emblazoned on the massive stone slab were the words: "Machoke's Guild." And engraved below that, "Home of the strong, the brave and the dynamic!"

"That's right," I nodded and smiled at Brin. "this is the Guild headquarters for Machoke's Guild. I would've preferred to show you my guild's headquarters first... but, I guess that wasn't meant to be, huh?"

We shared a quiet giggle as we sat back in our uncomfortable stone chairs. Unlike the warm, inviting atmosphere that Wigglytuff's guild had, this place had a more cold, lonely feel to it. The walls were ashen gray, having been mined out of the cliff like a cave. Even the chairs, tables and shelves were carved out of the same gray stone made from the walls.

While my guild house had windows carved in the walls that let natural light flow in from the outside, the walls here instead has strange, glowing jewels embedded in them. The jewels radiated a faint blue light, illuminating the empty lobby around Brin and I. The dim lighting, coupled with the stony gray walls, made me feel like I was sitting in the middle of a lonely prison.

There were no forms of decoration or any kind of fancies in here. The only things that adorned this lobby were rows of chairs that were lined up against the walls. There were shelves carved into the walls of the lobby, filled to the brim with brochures extolling the positives of joining this guild. I've already read them many times before, so they did not keep my interest for long.

At the very center of the lobby was a single, U – shaped counter. I assumed that there would've been a receptionist sitting there. But right now, it was abandoned and empty. I mused about checking behind it, maybe sitting in the receptionist's chair for some laughs. But I didn't want to seem rude. We're already kinda trespassing, so I didn't want to make things worse in case someone comes back.

It's already been a while since Brin and I arrived here at this drab, stony place. At first, we mused with the idea of just waiting outside the guild house to head off that Mienfoo. But as time went on, the sunlight became fainter and the air around us colder. After the first gust of icy night wind blew past us, we both agreed that waiting inside was a much more attractive idea.

For me, it was the first time I've ever visited a guild headquarters that wasn't my own. Of course, that isn't saying much since I haven't been an apprentice for very long, but I digress. Despite that though, I've heard many things about the other two guilds here in Treasure Town. Smiling, I turned to Brin and continued my lecture.

"Wigglytuff, Kadabra and Machoke are sometimes called 'The Big Three' here in Treasure Town," I said, holding up my forepaws and one of my hind paws to illustrate, "and that's because the three of them run the largest and most influential guilds here."

Brin smiled and poked at the base of my feet, making me giggle and pull my paws back. I grabbed onto her hand and gave her a playful grin.

"While Wigglytuff's Guild is best known for being the best of the best at exploring and discovering new things out here in the frontier, Machoke's guild runs a different road."

"Road?" Brin asked, pulling her hand out of my grasp.

"Well, that's a figure of speech," I clarified, "what I mean is that Machoke's Guild doesn't play on the same field as Wigglytuff's Guild. Instead of being focused on exploring, this guild prefers to work within the town. Because of that, they prefer to recruit strong, tough Pokémon and train them here as apprentices."

"The apprentices then go out and help out the residents of Treasure Town with various tasks and such." I turned to Brin and held out my paws above my head, "You saw those Mankey and Primeape above the town earlier right? Swinging from building to building? And the Tauros and Bouffalant too, pulling all those heavy caravans and wagons."

Brin nodded and held out her arms as well, waving them in the air as if she was trying to mimic the Mankey swinging around. I giggled and did the same, waving my paws over my head and pretending I was a Primeape.

"Well, a lot of them come from Machoke's Guild. They're very focused on bettering the lives of the Pokémon who live here. They build, they fix and they protect." I closed my eyes and recalled the sheriff's office from a few days ago. "The Magnemite, Magnezone and Sheriff Nidoking... a lot of Pokémon that graduate from this guild use their newfound strength to protect the residents from danger, keeping everyone who live here safe and sound. They're a very important guild, Brin."

"Bwahah! What was that? I believe I hear someone tooting my horn in here!"

All of a sudden, an explosive voice rang throughout the cave – like lobby we were sitting in. The uproarious laugh rebounded off the walls, bouncing all around us like an iron ball coated in rubber. Said rubber iron ball was also slamming, blasting and drilling its way into our ears.

"Eek!"

"Eeh...!"

I squinted my eyes and scanned around the lobby. Just a few seconds ago, it was just Brin and I sitting in here by ourselves. I turned toward the entrance of the lobby, where the huge sign was hovering above. Underneath the archway, and the gigantic sign, was a large boulder that had been stuck in the doorway for a reason I could not fathom.

All of a sudden, the boulder began to shake and rumble. Tiny bits of silt and dust slid down the sides of the lobby, piling up at the base of the walls as the boulder continued to jitter. Brin and I clung to each other as we watched the great big rock trundle away and disappear behind the other side of the archway.

"Welcome back to my humble abode, Blue!"

Four Pokémon came waltzing through the now – cleared entrance. To my utter surprise, the first of whom that came walking through the entrance was none other than the master of this guild himself, Machoke!

Following in the Guildmaster's wake were two other Pokémon. One of which was somebody I recognized as well. It was the heavyset Hariyama from the sheriff's office a few days ago. And walking beside him was that Mienfoo from before, the one that kidnapped Blue from us!

Feeling sour, I sent a glare at her, but she didn't seem to even notice me. Instead, Hariyama and the Mienfoo seemed to be staring at Machoke for some reason.

"Oh!"

Brin pointed her finger at Machoke, or rather, what was in his arms. A wriggling, blue – furred Pokémon was clamped between his forearm and side, trapped in a painful – looking headlock. It didn't take long for me to recognize who that was.

"Blue!" I rushed off my seat and ran over. My partner stopped trying to gnaw at Machoke's biceps and looked up at me.

"Fée!" he croaked. "What are you doing here?"

"I think I should be asking that of you!" I stopped before the four of them and looked up at Machoke. "Guildmaster Machoke, can you please let go of my partner?"

"Well if it isn't that cute little Eevee from back then!" Machoke bellowed out another loud laugh and planted a heavy hand on top of my head. "How've you been? I see you've become an explorer for old Wiggly, have you? Great work!"

"T – thanks," I said, feeling a little dazed at being patted by him. "m – my partner... can you please let him go?"

"Eh? Partner?" Machoke's eyes darted between Blue and I. He then glanced over at Hariyama, looking startled. "You mean... he's...?"

Hariyama let out a loud sigh and shook his head. He pointed at the Explorer's Pack hanging off Blue's body and said, "You mean you hadn't noticed from the Explorer's Pack he was wearing? Guildmaster?"

"Well, I had..." Machoke scratched the back of his head and bit his lower lip. "I was hoping it was just a replica though..."

"You weren't thinking of trying to recruit an apprentice from another guild again, are you?"

"...I had hoped..."

With a sigh, Machoke raised up his arm and released my friend. Blue slumped onto the floor, clutching his neck while groaning. Brin and I both surrounded him and supported him back onto his feet.

"Thanks, you two." Blue grinned at us as he straightened himself back up. "Were you two waiting here the whole time? How'd you know where to find me?"

"Well it wasn't that hard." I smiled at Blue as I pointed at the Mienfoo, "She mentioned Hariyama earlier, didn't she? So I just assumed that she was a part of Machoke's Guild."

I took a step back and sat down, thumping my tail against the floor. "Brin and I just took a shortcut. That's how we got here so quickly."

"But how did you get inside?" Hariyama asked. "The door should've been sealed while the Guildmaster and I were out on our business."

"Ehe... about that..."

I wandered over to the stone chairs that Brin and I were sitting on a few minutes ago. Machoke, Hariyama and Blue all followed behind me, watching me as I pushed one of the chairs aside. There, hidden in the crook between the wall and the floor was a small fissure in the smooth stone. I dug my paws into the crack and pulled.

_Whumph!_

Like pulling bark off a tree, an entire chunk of rock came sliding out of the wall. Now that a portion of the wall was gone, the secret passage that was hidden behind it was in plain view. A long tunnel that extends all the way out to another hidden cave entrance situated behind Kecleon and Kecleon's Wares.

"What...?!" Machoke's jaw dropped. He rushed up to the hidden tunnel and stuck his head into it. "Whoa...! This is deep! And long! Deep and long!"

"I can't even see the end of this tunnel!" His astounded voice echoed through the tunnel and back into the lobby. "Hariyama, was this always here? How come I never knew about this?!"

His large subordinate walked up and pulled him out by grabbing onto his shoulder. "If I knew, I would've informed you about it already." He turned to me and asked, "Eevee, how did you come across this?"

"Oh... I – um – I just found it one day," I said, not looking him in the eye. "it goes all the way to Kecleon's, and it's a bit of a tight squeeze. So I don't think a lot of Pokémon would be able to use it, right Brin?"

Brin coughed into her hand and brushed away a bit of stone dust from her skirt. Like when we were heading to the Marketplace earlier before, she didn't have a very pleasant experience when we were crawling through that tunnel, seeing as how she was almost twice my height.

"Hrm... that's a bit worrying," Machoke mumbled. The Guildmaster's expression turned serious all of a sudden, and all the joviality in his voice had vanished. "this does prove a pretty serious problem with our security, don't you think? Hariyama?"

Hariyama nodded and folded his arms, "I agree. Leaving this vulnerability open like this endangers our students and apprentices. We'll have to do something about it soon."

Machoke rubbed his chin and said, "I'll have Rapta deliver a message to Dugtrio when he returns in the morning. He's still off inspecting that new outpost near Amp."

"Very well. Shall I draft the letter?"

Machoke shook his head, "Nah, I'll do it later. It'll be less hassle if I use some of my clout."

"I see. I'll leave it to you then."

"We'll deal with that tomorrow though," Machoke stretched his arms above his head and grinned. He picked up the chunk of wall that I removed and jammed it back into the hole. "after all, there's something more interesting about to happen soon. Right?"

"Something interesting?" I echoed, curious.

"Bwahaha, oh you'll enjoy it, Eevee!" Machoke said, grinning. "Tonight, we got a special show that's about to happen! Something exciting, something _dynamic!_"

I tilted my head to the side, confused. I sent Hariyama a questioning glance, but he had covered his face with his large hand and was shaking his head. Blue, on the other hand, looked a little perturbed. His paws kept flitting between fiddling with the strap of his Explorer's Pack, or on his face, scratching his cheek.

"I suppose there's no reason to dawdle," Hariyama said. He strode in between Blue and the Mienfoo, and placed his hands on both their shoulders. "come. Let's head to the training room."

"Yes, master!" The Mienfoo said, clasping her paws in front of her chest. A big smile was on her face as she turned toward Blue, who just sighed and shrugged. He plucked Hariyama's hand off his shoulder and separated himself from them, moving over to Brin and I instead.

"I'm sorry Fée, Brin," he said. "I've gotten myself wrapped up into something troubling again. Do you guys mind if we stay here just a little bit longer?"

Brin and I both shared a look of befuddlement.

We both nodded at Blue, while I said, "We wouldn't mind staying for just a bit longer, but... why?"

"Er... well..." his voice trailed off as he glanced over at Hariyama and the Mienfoo again.

The two of them were following Machoke across the lobby and heading toward an exit at the other side. The three of them paused before entering to wave at us. The Mienfoo in particular was staring at Blue with a nasty expression on her face. After letting out another sigh, he faced Brin and I again and put on a small smile on his face.

"Look, I'll explain it as we walk," Blue said as he grabbed both of our paws, "I'm afraid of what might happen to me if I keep dawdling around like this..."

* * *

There was one specific book that I remember reading a long time ago, when I was still a little girl. It was a sort of diary written by a young Drilbur who worked as a miner in some part of the frontier. In that Drilbur's recollections, he described walking down the long mines as cold, unforgiving and lonely. He wrote that, as he traveled through the endless corridors of stone and grit, the only things that kept him company were the lanterns overhead.

However, shadows of all shapes and sizes formed around the Drilbur. Created by the dim, faint light from the swaying lanterns. He felt as though he was never alone. The shadows beside him were always around him, watching, waiting... smiling... The thought of being alone, in the dark and surrounded by shades was a terrifying thought.

Needless to say, I couldn't sleep for nights after reading that book.

Right now, walking down this corridor inside of Machoke's Guild reminded me of that diary. Like the lobby, the lights all around us were dull and dreary. As the only sources of light came from the tiny gems embedded in the walls, I could only see a few inches ahead of me at most. Fearful of the dark, I clung to Blue's side, leaning myself against him while he held on to my back.

Blue and Feyley didn't seem to mind the dark at all. The two of them were walking down the corridor, side – by – side, unperturbed by the dismal lighting. To my surprise, even Brin wasn't scared either. In fact, she seemed to be more interested in the gems encrusting the walls than being spooked by the myriad of shadows around us.

"Sorry about the lighting situation, kids!" Machoke's loud voice barreled down the corridor, jarring me out of my thoughts. "We've been meaning to put up some lanterns or something, but we've never been able to get around to! Bwahaha!"

"And that's because you spent a large portion of our treasury commissioning goods like 'Machoke Focus Bands' and 'Machoke Jump Ropes.'" I heard Hariyama grumble ahead. "We still haven't cleared out the storage of all that junk yet."

"Bwaha! We still broke even in the end, didn't we?"

"That's not something to be proud about..."

Machoke just bellowed out another laugh and slapped Hariyama in the back as they walked ahead, leaving Blue, Brin, the Mienfoo and I behind. With the levity that Machoke was providing gone, all that was left behind was a thick, tense atmosphere hovering over us. The source of which... came from that Mienfoo.

"Mrgh..." she grumbled again. Her displeased scowl was plainly visible, even in this dim hallway. Even now, I still don't understand why she would be so mad. I was desperate for any kind of sound, anything to break away from the monotony of our echoing footsteps. Nudging my head underneath Blue's arm, I gave him a quick nip on the paw to grab his attention.

"B – Blue... don't you find this place a little creepy?" I stammered. "It's nothing like Wigglytuff's at all, d – don't you think?"

"It is a bit dark," Blue mused. He rubbed the top of my head with his paw and grinned, "Fée, are you afraid?"

"M – me? Afraid?" I shook my head, bumping the size of my muzzle against his leg in the process. "I – I'm just not good in the dark! I'm... not scared, no, don't be silly!"

Blue sniggered and patted me on the head, "Sure, I believe you. This place isn't so scary, right? Here, I'll slow down a bit, and you can take the lead. Okay?"

I watched in astonishment as he stopped in his tracks. He then backed up, leaving me alone while the Mienfoo and Brin continued to move ahead, unaware of what was going on. A few seconds later, Blue's entire body vanished into the shadows.

"No!"

The next thing I knew, I was racing down the corridor at top speed, panicking at the thought of being left alone in the dark. As soon as I caught sight of his face again, I rushed and jumped at him.

_Whumph!_

"Eh?!" Blue's eyes bugged out as I crashed into his chest. The two of us were sent tumbling backward, spinning head over tail as we rolled down the corridor. A few dizzying moments later, we came to a stop and found ourselves sprawled over the stone floor.

"Ooogh..."

"Again...?"

Groaning, I shoved myself off the ground and shook the dust off my fur. I turned and saw Blue face down on the floor. Worried, I rushed over and wriggled under his arm to help him back up.

"Pathetic."

I turned around as a scathing voice rang out behind us. A paw came down and snagged Blue by the back of his collar, yanking him back up on his feet and tossing me to the side. She pushed him away, shaking her head and crossing her arms.

"To be afraid of the dark... feh!" Feyley snorted. She gazed down at me, her eyes glinting in the dim light. "Back on Travail, we had to train in the darkest of nights! There was no light for us, no light indeed!"

Brin ran over to where I was lying on the ground and wrapped her arms around my waist. I turned and thanked her as she helped me back on my feet. I stared at the Mienfoo, tapping my paw against my chin. What she said had reminded me of something I've read before...

"Travail?" I asked. "By that, do you mean Mount Travail?"

"You've heard of my home?"

I nodded, "I've read about it before in a travelogue that I found in the library." I turned to my friends and said, "It was a book detailing the various mountains that surround the frontier. You know, like Horn, Mistral, and Bristle!"

"Oh!" Blue piped up. He grinned at Brin, and then at me before throwing his arm up in the air, "I know the last one!"

Giggling, I patted him on the side and said, "Of course you do. We've been there, silly." I batted him with my tail as I turned around, "Anyway. That book I read also detailed a few interesting tidbits of info about Mount Travail."

"Do tell, Eevee," The Mienfoo was clearly disinterested, what with the way she talked and how she was already walking far ahead of us.

I wasn't disheartened though, not when there's a chance for me to teach my friends more about the frontier. I turned my head to Blue and Brin as I followed Feyley down the dark tunnel. All of a sudden, it doesn't seem so scary anymore, not when we're all talking to each other.

"I've heard that over a hundred of different Pokémon live on Mount Travail," I said. "All of them different, of course."

"Over a hundred?" Blue repeated, sounding impressed. "I wonder what kinds of Pokémon live there? I mean, there's definitely Mienfoo, but what else?"

"Well, from what I've read, there's are Machop, Tyrogue, Meditite, Makuhi–"

"Only Mienfoo and Mienshao live there."

My attention was jarred back by the sudden return of Feyley. She stood before us as she planted her paws on her hips and scowled.

"You're misinformed," she claimed. "the only Pokémon that are permitted to live atop our mountain are Mienfoo and Mienshao." Feyley raised her paw and pointed it at Blue, "The only times it is allowed for a Pokémon other than a Mienfoo or Mienshao to reside within our training grounds are when we find somebody injured on the mountain... or when someone brings home a mate."

"E – eh? That can't be!" Out of instinct, I reached for the bag around my neck as if the travelogue was inside of it. Realizing that I was wearing my Explorer's Pack instead of usual pink bag, I paused myself in the middle of rummaging through my pack and looked back to Feyley.

"I don't know what your 'travelogue' says, but it's wrong." Feyley held her fist before her face and sneered. "My family, along with all the others, have lived on the mountain for centuries. Training, honing ourselves to become the pinnacle of strength." She threw a punch at Blue, her fist stopping mere inches before hitting his nose.

"From early morning to late night, we would train and train until we faint from exhaustion! That is the Travail way!"

"That sounds tiring," Blue remarked. "you'd wake up in the morning, and just keep punching each other until the sun sets?"

"W – we do _not_ just punch each other all day!" Feyley seethed. She jabbed Blue in the chest with her paw, looking irritated, "We do more than just hard combat! We meditate, study, and do spiritual training! Do not be mistaken!"

"Alright, I get it!" Blue said, brushing away her paw. He tapped his cheek with his paw. A small grin crawled on his face as he began to chuckle to himself.

"What's so funny, Riolu?" Feyley grumbled.

"I just remembered something," Blue nudged Feyley in the chest with a finger. "didn't Machoke just say that you went to sleep around this time yesterday? So much for training all day, all night hm?"

Feyley's face flushed a deep red, which was still visible even in the dim light. Her paw shot out toward Blue again, reaching for his collar. But before she could take a firm grasp on him, my partner ducked out of the way and avoided it.

"Not this time!" Blue said, grinning. "I saw that coming!"

"Errgh...!" Feyley glared at him, her paw clenching into a fist. "Your memory is only good when it suits you, doesn't it?!"

"I don't remember."

"Argh!"

The Mienfoo's blush intensified from a bright red to a deep scarlet after Blue's remark. At this point, it was hard to tell if her blush was caused by her anger at Blue, or by her embarrassment at being called out by Blue. She launched another attempt to grab him, but Blue just sidestepped it and ducked behind Brin, all the while smirking at the furious Feyley.

Brin and I watched as Feyley turned away from Blue. She began to grumble and mutter as she started to stomp down the hall. Her loud footsteps were masking her angry mutterings, but I could still pick up the gist of what she was mumbling.

"It's... it's a luxury to be able to go to sleep before sundown..." Feyley grumbled. "This town is so lax... it's nothing like Travail... the guild even lets me sleep in the morning... how can I allow myself to be so carefree?... Even that stupid Riolu noticed... how frustrating! How frustrating indeed! I'll need to toughen myself up again.. no more naps, no more snacks...!"

"Hehe..." I shook my head and ran up beside Feyley. Putting on my most innocent smile, I glanced up and asked, "What kind of snacks do you eat? Candies? Cakes?"

"Biscuits," she replied without looking at me. "a fellow guildmate of mine brought in a bag of biscuits the other day. They were.. so delicious that I accidentally wolfed all of them down." Sighing, Feyley shook her head and covered her mouth with her paw. "If I could ever find out where he found those biscuits, I'd go and buy an entire box of them and spend an entire afternoon eatin–"

All of a sudden, she halted her ramblings about the biscuits. Her head snapped back, her eyes goggling at the sight of Blue, Brin and I smiling as we listened to her talk about biscuits. Her cheeks looked as though they were lit afire, glowing a bright red again. With a huff, she spun around and returned to ignoring us.

"Biscuits, huh?" I looked over at Brin and said, "You know, Duskull runs his own bakery here in town. We – that is, Blue and I – saw him making biscuits right in front of us." I closed my eyes as I recalled that event.

"A big white smoke cloud came from the oven, and the entire bakery was filled with a delicious smell. Ahh..." Realizing that I was licking my lips, I covered my open mouth with my paw and blushed Brin giggled and tapped her chin as she looked up at the ceiling with a pensive expression on her face.

"Mmm!" Brin nodded as she pressed her hands over her cheeks.

"Hey, save some for me, you two," Blue said, tweaking my ear with his paw, "I'd really like to have some more of that bread Duskull gave me. The big, long and white one. You know, the one that tasted all minty and cool?"

I nodded, "I remember! That was really delicious!" I couldn't help but lick my lips again as I reminisced about that delectable, berry – encrusted loaf. "Mmm... hehe... thinking about all those pastries he gave us makes me want to just want to go back and visit Duskull."

Blue grinned and held Brin's hand, "Well, we're going to be visiting there again in a bit. So that's something to look forward to, right?"

"Brin," I said. "when we go back to the Phantom Patisserie, you _must_ ask him to make us some fresh pastries! We can all have a nice pastry dinner together! You, me, Blue, Oro, Mismagius, Duskull... all of us!"

Blue and Brin both let out a cheer and clapped their hands and paws over me. Giggling, I looked ahead at Feyley. She was walking alone ahead of us, acting standoffish and uninterested. But I could tell that she was listening in on what we were talking about. One of her ears were raised, and she seemed to be holding her belly with one of her paws.

"You can come with us too!" I shouted ahead at her. "If you want, we can ask Duskull to make you the kind of biscuits you were talking about! He's definitely capable of that!"

It was a strange feeling. Even though she had acted so fierce, so violent, to us before, I couldn't help but want to make friends with her. If it were the Fée of the past, I never would've even given a thought about even talking to someone so scary. But now... I find myself beaming at the Mienfoo, inviting her to our little pastry party.

Maybe I've changed. After meeting so many nice Pokémon like Sunflora, Loudred, and even Barie... I find that I'm at my happiest with Pokémon I can laugh with. It's such a nice feeling to have friends for once. I just couldn't wait to make more.

"What do you say, Feyley?" I asked. "Do you want to come along with us–"

"Oy, kids!"

The four of us all jumped about a foot in the air when Machoke's outrageous voice came barreling down the corridor. My question was gone, blown away like a leaf in a windstorm. We looked ahead, and saw the muscled figure of Machoke standing at the end of the hall. His entire body was illuminated by a bright light beaming out from behind him.

The powerful Guildmaster raised his arm and announced, "Welcome to the training hall, Blue! I hope you're ready to put on a dynamic show!"

I turned around and saw Blue wearing an indecipherable expression. Was he worried? Or was he excited? I couldn't tell by the way he was looking.

"Hey."

With a confident smirk plastered on her face, Feyley grabbed Blue by the shoulder and held her fist against his face.

"I hope you'll give me a good fight, Riolu. I'm looking forward to it."


	30. The Princess' Power

**•   
Chapter 28  
**

**"The Princess' Power"**

* * *

"Ew, not another one!"

A young Pokémon, clad in a pristine white dress let out a disgusted cry as she hurled the sweat – stained strip of cloth into the air. The soiled headband landed in a small wicker basket that was filled to the brim with similar, rancid objects. Pinching her nose, the white – dressed Pokémon trotted over to the basket and glanced down at it. Her pale face turned bright green as a jolt of disgust traveled through her dainty body.

"You'd think that the guys would take better care of their junk!" Kirlia grumbled, clutching her sides as she shivered out of revulsion. "Especially when they _know_ that there's two lovely girls cleaning up after them! Seriously, I think I found three or four pairs of socks just lying there, moldering underneath a bench! And I think all of them are from _Tyrogue!"_

Her anguished cry resounded all around the large, rectangular room she was in. The solid stone walls of the Machoke's Guild training room returned her voice in the form of an echo. Her scream sprung off the clay floor below, bounced around the walls like a pinball, before finally springing up toward the wooden beams holding up the ceiling.

Dust and silt slipped off the rafters and landed down on the floor, making little piles of gray all around the place. Following that, a single sock, having been stuck up in the rafters for who – knows – how long was jarred loose by her scream. The piece of clothing landed right on top of Kirlia's head with perfect accuracy.

"_Aieee_!" Kirlia screamed. Snatching the sock off her head, she threw it into the basket. Her face a mask of fury and revulsion, Kirlia hurled a powerful kick at the basket, sending it skittering away toward the opposite end of the room.

"Disgusting, disgusting, disgusting!" Kirlia screamed, dancing on her tiptoes as she mussed up her hair out of disgust. "I hate this part of the job! None of the cute boys are awake, everything smells of sweat, and everywhere I look there's a stupid and stinky sock!"

The basket slid across the surface of the floor, spinning around like an out of control Hitmontop. As it skidded over the clay – topped floor, the wicker basket struck an uneven patch of earth and began to tip over. The hair – curling contents within peered over the top of the container, preparing to leap out and escape their confinement.

But, right before catastrophe struck, the entire basket and its contents were enveloped in a bright, deep purple light. Trapped within the bright glow, the basket and its disgusting cargo lost all inertia, frozen in mid – spill. In a way, it resembled a kind of strange, abstract art. Albeit a very disgusting, stomach – churning piece of strange, abstract art.

"If you are going to complain, then do it with your mouth shut."

A quiet scribbling noise filled the air. Sitting at a dark corner in the training hall was Gothorita, clad in her usual black dress and hidden beneath a dim shade. Uninterested in the chaos unfolding around her, Gothorita's eyes were instead pointed down at a squad, black notepad that was hovering above her lap, covered in the same purple glow as the basket. A small, also – black feather quill was held in her hand, skittering to and fro across the surface of the notepad as the gloomy – looking Pokémon engrossed herself in her project.

"I have to wonder why you are picking up the used laundry with your bare hands, Kirlia," she murmured, not taking her eyes off her work. "have you forsaken your psionic powers for physical, menial labor? You befuddle and bewilder me."

Gothorita held up her left arm and waved her hand around. One by one, the many pieces of soiled clothing began to circle around the basket. With great finesse, every sock, headband and so on and so forth folded themselves into neat stacks of off – white in midair before dropping themselves inside the basket. Once all the junk was neatly tucked away, the purple glow faded and everything landed back onto the floor.

"Show off..." Kirlia snorted. She strode over to Gothorita's bench, all the while making sure to give the disgusting basket a wide berth. The green – haired Pokémon sighed and placed a hand on top of Gothorita's notebook, "Gothy, didn't I tell you earlier that I wasn't going to use any psychic powers for the entire day today?"

"No, you did not." Gothorita replied, brushing Kirlia's hand away. "I am going to assume that it was for a pointless and meaningless reason."

"It was _not_ for a pointless and meaningless reason!" Kirlia steamed. She plonked herself down on the bench beside Gothorita and folded her arms in a huff. A twinge of annoyance crossed the black – clad Gothorita's face, and she inched away from her irritated friend.

"Well! If that's the case, then I'll just have to tell you again!" Kirlia announced, drawing out an annoyed groan from her friend. Clasping her hands in front of her chest, Kirlia closed her eyes and smiled wide as she began to fantasize.

"It was yesterday morning when I met him. The sun was shining bright above my head while I was taking my beauty stroll by myself down the Marketplace streets. That place is so much prettier when there weren't a gazillion peddlers taking up all the space, don't you think?" she turned to Gothorita, but the gloomy Pokémon had already returned her attention to her notepad. Miffed, Kirlia snatched the quill out of the air and scowled.

"Don't ignore me, Gothy!" Kirlia scolded. "I'm telling you the story of how I met him!"

"Ugh..." Gothorita eyed the poor quill crushed within Kirlia's dainty fingers with disgust. With how hard she was gripping it, it didn't look like her friend was going to let go of it until she had finished regaling her tale to her. With no other choice than to sit and suffer through her friend's asinine story, Gothorita let out a defeated sigh and closed her notepad.

"Anyway!" Happy that Gothorita was being cooperative now, Kirlia held the quill up to her cheek and smiled. "At the time, the sun was so bright and hot overhead that it made me feel like I was going to melt into a puddle! So I ran to the center of the Marketplace and rested my tired, hot body in the shade."

"So you went to go sit down at a tree. Riveting."

"Oh hush, you! I'm getting to the good part!"

Gothorita sighed again.

"So I was there, sitting all by my lonesome underneath that tree. Wondering when and where I will go next, pondering about what will I do before I have to head here for my part – time job..."

"Oh yes, because you think so much about your work."

"Shut up and let me tell my story! Gosh!" Kirlia cleared her throat and continued. "_As I was saying!_ While I was sitting there pondering my options, I heard somebody calling out to me. Let me tell you Gothy, when I heard that Pokémon's voice, I felt like I was going to faint! It was so... smooth, so suave sounding!"

"Really."

"And then, and then!" unable to contain her excitement, Kirlia pressed the black feather quill against her cheek even harder, bending it like a piece of licorice. "When I turned around, I saw the most handsome Pokémon I've ever seen in my entire life!"

"That doesn't mean much." Gothorita grumbled, scowling at the mistreatment of her quill. "You say that about every handsome Pokémon you meet."

"Well, I mean it for real this time!" Kirlia retorted with a pout. "That Pokémon was like... he was like a beautiful painting come to life! His face was so handsome, so sleek! And the way he spoke... he just had this unbelievable cultured aura emitting from every word he said! I just couldn't believe that such a Pokémon lived here in Treasure Town!"

"I can not believe it as well." Gothorita sighed and relinquished the glow around her notepad, letting it flop back onto her lap. She turned toward the starry-eyed Kirlia and frowned. "You speak so much about this Pokémon, and you have yet to tell me who or what it is."

Kirlia giggled and dismissed Gothorita's words with a wave of her hand, "It doesn't matter if I tell you, Gothy. He's not your type at all" Her eyes narrowed as her smile turned into a snide smirk, "The Pokémon I met was cool, sweet, handsome, cultured and classy! Just my type!"

She puffed out her small chest and beamed, "While the kind of Pokémon _you_ prefer are those big, bulky musclebound types that have no dignity whatsoever." Kirlia shot a glance at the stench – filled basket and wrinkled her nose. "The kind that just junk their socks and garbage all over the place!"

"Tch," peeved, Gothorita furrowed her brow and turned away. She entertained the notion of using her psychic powers to hurl the wicker basket at Kirlia for that remark. It would be a good way to get back at her for being so callous with her remarks. But upon thinking further about it, Gothorita decided to forgo getting revenge it for now.

Dumping an entire guild's worth of dirty laundry on her friend will cause more trouble than it will solve, she figured.

"Anyway," completely unaware of how close she was to danger, the carefree Kirlia continued with her story. "that Pokémon asked me if I knew which way was to the post office – which was a big surprise to me! He must've been really confused, since I can't believe anybody would be looking for the post office while wandering around in the Marketplace!"

"Or he could have just moved into town a few days ago..." Gothorita pointed out.

"Oh!" Kirlia's eyes lit up as she turned toward her friend. She tapped a slender finger against her chin and pursed her lips, "That must be it! I never even thought about that! Ooh...! If he is from out of town, I wonder where he's from? That incredible accent he has... I wonder...!"

Gothorita sighed and shrugged, "How would I know? As far as I am concerned, this Pokémon of yours may as well exist only in your delusions. I see no reason to put any stock in it."

"Must you be such a gloomy stick – in – the – mud all the time?" Kirlia grumbled, jabbing the quill at her friend's cheek. "You know, every time Buneary and I try to invite you on to our boy hunts, you always end up scaring them away or creeping them out!"

Taking this chance, Gothorita snatched away her quill from Kirlia and stuck it between the pages of her notebook. "It is not my fault that your _boys_ cannot appreciate the elegant tapestry that I weave with the magnificent knitting needles that I deign to call my literature."

"Oh blah, blah, blah," Kirlia mocked, opening and closing her hand to mimic her mouth. "all you ever do is write trashy love novels that involve you and whatever musclebrain that caught your fancy that day. Don't try to make it sound more than it is!"

"Kirlia..." Gothorita hissed, her face turning a dark shade of purple.

A mischievous look crossed her face as her eyes flitted over to the notepad. In a blink of an eye, her arm shot out and snatched the notebook out of Gothorita's hands. Giggling, Kirlia undid the clasp on the cover and flipped it open. "Speaking of which, who are you writing about today? I bet it's someone stupid, like Machop."

"H – hey! Do not touch my _Grimoire of Despair_!" Gothorita protested. She tried to snatch it back from her friend, but Kirlia leapt off the bench and pranced away. "Kirlia!"

"Hee hee... ooh, let's see!" Kirlia flipped through the pages of the notepad with glee sparkling all over her eager face. "Ooh, here's the latest one! _The Chance Meeting Between the Goddess of the Dark and the Prince of Brawn!" _Giggling, the white dressed Pokémon spun around and smiled at her blushing friend and commented, "It looks like your titling sense is as good as ever, Gothy!"

"Kirlia!" the Goddess of Dark seethed as she rushed after her friend, her face burning a bright, flaming red. "Unhand my _Grimoire_ right this instant before I call down a million curses upon your Lum – green head!"

"Curses?" Kirlia giggled as she danced away from Gothorita's outstretched arm. "Oh, you mean like this one you wrote here? The _Curse of Everlasting Chills Down Your Spine? _I'm so, _so_ scared, Gothy!"

"Rrgh!"

The two girls ran around the training room, with Kirlia holding out the _Grimoire of Despair_ like a flag while Gothorita chased after her. Their frantic game of keep – away lasted for a scant few seconds before both girls had to stop and rest, with Kirlia grasping her knees and panting while her friend straight up collapsed on to the floor to catch her breath.

"Haah... haah..." Kirlia held her chest as she gulped down mouthfuls of air. She shook her head and shot her exhausted friend a smirk. "Looks like I'm still the victor here...! I'm still... faster, just a bit...!"

"...as if that means anything...!" Gothorita shot back. "You are... still tired... like me!"

"Hee... but I'm still standing!"

Kirlia tried to straighten herself up, but her knees buckled beneath her and she ended up falling onto her behind with a thud. Groaning, she tried to hoist herself back onto her feet, but she found herself unable to move from the spot. With a quiet sigh, she gave up on trying to stand back up and instead turned back to Gothorita.

"W... well, at least I can finish telling you my story now."

Gothorita groaned out of frustration in response. Like Kirlia, she wasn't the most adept when it came to stamina or anything regarding physical exertion, really. While she did want to retrieve her notepad as soon as she can, it wasn't possible if she had to chase after her irritating best friend.

"Fine..." Gothorita conceded. "I will listen to the rest of your stupid story. But you will have to give back my _Grimoire_ when you're done, alright?"

"Hee... I still can't believe you call it that, Gothy. It's so cute."

"It is not _cute!_" Gothorita spat back. "_The Grimoire of Despair_ is an elegant and mystical name, fitting for one so in tune with darkness such as I! Now finish your stupid story before I change my mind!"

"Right, sure. Whatever. So where was I...? Oh right, I was meeting the most handsome Pokémon I've ever seen in my entire life!" Kirlia accentuated her words with a fluttering sigh. "He was so dreamy... when he was looking at me from above, I could see sunlight illuminating his face from behind. A halo of beautiful light surrounded him, and when he spoke... oh, I felt like I was going to melt into a puddle when he asked me if I was alright!"

"Save the descriptive details and just get on with it, Kirlia."

"And you call yourself a writer, Gothy." Kirlia giggled as she spun the notepad around in her hand. "So he was asking me where the post office was. I, being the polite and well – mannered girl I was, I very specifically told him that the post office wasn't in town."

"Yes, you told him to head to a place that is currently inaccessible. Very polite."

"Oh no, of course I wasn't that rude!" Kirlia tapped her cheek and winked. "I did the nice thing and offered to teleport him all the way down the beach myself. And I even told him that I'd be willing to wait there until all his errands are done so I can bring him back to town."

"Teleport? _You?_" Gothorita threw her head back and belted out an unladylike chortle. "If you had attempted to take him to Wingull Walkway with your so called _teleporting_, we would have had to send out a rescue party all the way to Spring Town!"

A fierce shade of red splashed onto Kirlia's face, "I – I'm not that incompetent at teleporting!" She twiddled with her fingers as she muttered to herself. "I – I'm just a little bad at the calculation aspect of it..." She shook her head and slapped her cheeks, "A – anyway! It doesn't even matter... I didn't get to take him there in the end..."

"Oh? Why is that?

Kirlia sighed and fanned her blush away with Gothorita's notepad, "When I suggested that I take him using teleportation, he refused. He said he preferred take the slow, scenic route by walking."

"Yes, walking," Gothorita sneered as she mimed the action of walking with two fingers, "all the way from the Marketplace to Wingull Walkway. It would have taken the of you an hour, perhaps two, to reach there while taking a leisurely stroll."

"That's what I said!" Kirlia said. "I told him that it would take ages if we walked! But he insisted that we walk instead of using any sort of psychic assistance! It was so weird!"

"And that is why you're not using any of your psychic powers today then?"

"Well... something like that," the white – dressed girl wiggled her fingers in front of her, conjuring up a small speck of green light before her face. "we did walk for a bit, going a bit toward the Main Plaza. While we were walking, I asked him why he was so adamant against teleporting. And you know what he said?"

"No, how would I?" Gothorita grumbled.

"He told me that he wasn't very fond of psychic powers!" Kirlia announced, looking outraged. "Can you believe that?"

"Yes, yes I can," Gothorita played with one of her hair ribbons for a moment before adding, "so that's why you are not using any of your powers today? What a petty reason."

"I – I believe that's because h – he's definitely more into girls who can pull their own weight!" Kirlia protested, grabbing the hem of her skirt with her hands. "So! I decided that if I was going to ask him out someday, I better make sure I'm capable of doing everything I can without resorting to using my mind!"

"If that is the case, when why do you not go on expeditions with your sister or Buneary?" Gothorita asked. "It would make far more sense to go on an actual training regimen instead of performing brainless tasks like picking up socks with your bare hands."

"I – I don't want to be a burden to big sis Gardevoir!" Kirlia said, blanching. "The last thing I want is to futz up one of their important expeditions! Besides... big sis is always trying to teach me how to better use my psychic powers anyway, so it wouldn't help my situation in any way!"

"Great story," Gothorita said, clapping her hands. "it was very entertaining. If I were a publisher, I would definitely give it a hardback and limited edition print. Now may I please have my _Grimoire_ back?"

Kirlia turned and shot Gothorita a dirty look for a second before shaking her head in defeat. She tossed Gothorita's notepad back at her, wherein the black – dressed girl caught it in a bubble of purple psionic energy. Smiling, Gothorita took her book back and hugged it close to her bosom.

"Honestly, you should work on your listening skills," Kirlia said, brushing her hair back in a huff. Stretching out her arms and legs, she pushed herself off the ground and planted her hands on her hips. "Come on Gothy, let's get a move on. It's getting late, and this place is as clean as it'll ever get. We'll visit Buneary's place and see if she's back from exploring with her sister yet, and then we can go grab some dinner together."

"Truly, the most sensible thing you have said all day," Gothorita remarked. She tried to get off the clay floor as well, but she only managed a few inches off the ground before she fell back with a thump. Her face flared up as she rubbed her sore behind.

Kirlia tittered as she held out a hand to her friend, "Maybe you should think about getting some exercise too, Gothy?"

"Please," Gothorita grabbed a hold of her friend's hand and pulled herself up. "my darkest artes allow me to do everything anybody else can with out even so much as lifting a finger, Kirlia. You, of all Pokémon, should know this quite well."

"Yes, yes," Kirlia said, tapping Gothorita in the cheek. "you're so skilled at your 'darkest artes' that you can do everything anybody else can. Except attract any of your favorite beefcake boys, eh Gothy?"

"Errgh...!"

The last straw has been broken. Her dignity was now at stake. With little else she could do, Gothorita decided to take her sweet revenge on her insulting friend! She dredged up her darkest, innermost energies from the deepest pits within her (not really) ashen black heart. Once her energies have surfaced, Gothorita took hold of her dimness and unsealed her (supposed) great powers of darkness that was being smelted within her body, drawing it out in order to use as a heinous fuel for her most evilest evil and most accursed curse against her worst enemy (and best friend), Kirlia!

"Take this!" she howled, startling Kirlia with her sudden increase in volume. Gothorita held her arms high above her ribboned head, clutching her dark energies within both of her hands. "Forged in the raging flaming of Mount Kiln, molded by countless spectres under my contract! Behold! The curse to end all curses! The almighty _Curse of Everlasting Ch –!_"

_Bwam! __Thud!_

The two girls, startled and scared by the sudden noise, clung to each other out of instinct. All pretense of cursing or insults gone. Shivering, Kirlia and Gothorita both turned their gazes toward the entrance of the training room. The large wooden doors that separated them from the dark corridor appeared to have been blown off their hinges; both doors were now hanging loose, held up by a single nail.

"Bwahaha! Come on in! Come on in! It's nice and bright here!"

The unmistakeable sound of the most bombastic Guildmaster in all of Treasure Town boomed into the training hall, causing the rafters and the benches to vibrate from the sheer force of his vocal chords alone. Kirlia and Gothorita both breathed a sigh of relief as they saw the musclebound Pokémon stride through the busted up doors, a beaming grin plastered on his face.

"Oh?" Machoke flexed his right bicep when he saw the two girls standing in the middle of the room. "Well if it isn't Kirlia and Gothorita! What are you two still doing here? Catching up on some last minute reps?"

"G – Guildmaster?!" Kirlia stammered, feeling both mollified and surprised at the same time. "What are you doing back so soon? Weren't you supposed to be gone for the entire night at that Guildmasters' Meeting?"

The rest of Machoke's party filed in through the busted up doors after him, with Hariyama sighing and shaking his head at yet another piece of furniture destroyed. Fée, Blue and Brin looked glad to be out of the darkness, and were gazing all around the massive training hall with interest. Feyley, on the other hand, wore a stoic expression on her face and stood beside Hariyama without speaking a word.

"Well, it got really boring, so I ditched!" Machoke said without a single shred of shame in his voice. "Other than seeing Wiggly break every window with his snoring, there really wasn't anything interesting going on at all! It was just hours and hours of ol'Kadabra and Chatot droning on and on and on about the economy, the frontier, expedition projects and blah, blah, blaaaagh!"

The Guildmaster stuck out his tongue and mimed being punched in the gut. His second – in – command sighed and slapped a hand over his face. Kirlia let out a nervous giggle and glanced past the wincing Machoke. While Gothorita was busy being enamored with Machoke's impressive bod, Kirlia noticed the other visitors behind him. Her eyes lit up as she recognized one of them in particular,

"Ah!" the white – dressed girl rushed released her grip on Gothorita and rushed past Machoke and Hariyama. She raced over to the entrance of the training room, and reached out her hands ahead of her.

"Eh?" Blue's eyes widened as he found himself being pulled forward by his paws, away from the rest of his friends. Kirlia grasped both of his paws tight, smiling wide right into his face as she continued to pull him toward the middle of the training room.

"I knew we'd meet again someday!" Kirlia squealed as she jumping up and down with unbridled glee while she gripped his paws tighter than a Kingler's pincers. "Do you still remember me? I was the Pokémon that registered you for the big event the other day! I even gave you your badge!"

"R – registered?" A cold feeling of dread slithered down Blue's spine, prompting him to shoot a quick glance at Feyley. The Mienfoo's eyes had narrowed to tiny slits, and were directed right at his guilty face.

The sheer amount of suspicion that was emanating from Feyley's expression was enough to make the dishonest Riolu sweat marbles. Gulping, he turned toward Fée and Brin, looking for help. To his dismay, the two of them looked just as perplexed as he was at this turn of events.

"You _do _remember me, right?" Kirlia asked, staring intently into his awkward expression. "You can't have forgotten the face of such a cute, adorable girl like me, right?"

As of this moment, the conflicted Riolu was presented with two choices. Either lie to this 'cute, adorable girl's' face about their meeting, or admit to his lie in front of Feyley and eat a much harsher punishment. Neither option stood out to Blue as the correct one. He didn't want to hurt Kirlia's feelings, and he definitely didn't want to be hurt by Feyley.

_That's it,_ Blue slapped his face and groaned. _I'm never lying again._

"Are you alright?" Kirlia asked, tilted her head below his chin so she could see his frustrated expression from under his paw. "Hee hee... are you blushing because you got to see me again?"

Feeling bold, Kirlia stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Blue's. She pulled him toward her, embracing his arm as she smiled wide up into his face. Fée and Brin both frowned at this sudden display of affection, while Feyley's lip twitched in annoyance.

"Erm..." feeling more confused than embarrassed, Blue tried to shake himself free from Kirlia's tight grasp. But her arms were wrapped far tighter around his arm than he had imagined. It was as if a giant Tentacruel had attached itself to his arm. The strength behind this girl's grip astounded the captive Riolu.

Once more, he glanced around him in a desperate bid to find somebody that could get him out of this troubling situation. Guildmaster Machoke was too busy posing for a rather starstruck – looking Gothorita. Hariyama and Feyley were both staring at him, stone faced and looking as though they didn't want to interfere. Fée and Brin, on the other hand, seemed to be discussing something between each other.

"Say! Do you have any plans for later, Riolu?" Kirlia asked, pulling his attention back to her. She twirled a strand of hair around her finger and put on a coquettish smile. "I was thinking of going to have some dinner _by myself_ at Lickitung's in a bit. But you know... I _wouldn't mind_ if someone else would come along with me."

"Erm...!"

Before Blue could swallow his confusion to give an adequate reply, a sudden flash of deep purple erupted before him. When the light faded from his eyes, he saw a thick, purple glow surround Kirlia's body, levitating her off the ground and separating her from Blue.

"Waaah!" Kirlia swung her arms around in the air, looking for something to grab onto as she was forced farther and father away from the Riolu. Once she was a fair distance away, the purple glow vanished, depositing her on the ground in front of Gothorita.

"You are hopeless," the black – clad Pokémon remarked with a snort. She grabbed Kirlia by the shoulder and started to drag her farther and farther away. "what ever happened to 'let us go visit Buneary and then go have some dinner together?' Not to mention you appeared to have already forgotten that handsome Pokémon you were raving on and on about earlier... you are incorrigible."

"Gothorita!" Kirlia hissed. "You're ruining my chance at a date!"

"Good. Consider this payback for ruining my quill."

Kirlia let out pouting whine and reached out toward Blue, "Riolu! Save your Princess from this evil countess! Please!"

"Erm..." still a little out of it, Blue glanced toward Fée and Brin in an attempt to discern what he should do. However, the two of them were still locked in some kind of discussion with each other, ignoring the Riolu's plight. Sighing, Blue scratched the back of his head and gave Kirlia a dour wave of his paw and a shake of his head.

"S – sorry," he said, feeling rather guilty for some reason. "I can't. I... uh, I have other plans tonight."

"Aw!" Kirlia cried out. "W – well, maybe we can go eat together some other time! Alright? Alright?!"

"Erm..."

"Kirlia..." Gothorita shook her head and covered her face with her hand.

"Come to think of it," Kirlia tapped her cheek and gazed around at all the Pokémon standing around Blue. "other than the Princess, there's a lot more new faces around here than usual. What's the occasion, Guildmaster?"

"Bwahaha!" Machoke folded his muscular arms and chortled, "What's the occasion, you ask? Well, why don't we have the Princess herself explain it to you two? After all, aren't you three good friends?"

"Please do not lump me together with these two," Feyley retorted with a scowl. "to be associated with them... how insulting... insulting indeed."

"Princess, that's really rude!" Kirlia said, puffing out her cheeks in indignation. "I can't believe you're still so cold to us, even after all we did for you! Buneary and I spent a long time getting you ready for our boy hunts yesterday, and you just ran off without even so much as a thanks or a goodbye!"

"You have done nothing to merit my respect," Feyley spat. "I had no interest in participating in your 'boy hunts,' nor was I particularly fond of having you and Buneary slather berry juice on my face for hours on end."

"It's called_ makeup!_"

"It's called a waste of my time. A waste indeed."

"Oooh!" Kirlia stamped the floor and pouted. "The reason why you can't get any boys is because you keep acting like that! You're not living on a mountain anymore, Princess! You need to loosen up!"

Feyley stuck out her fist at Kirlia and scowled, "Would you drop that blasted 'Princess' moniker already? I accepted it at first out of politeness, but it is becoming a nuisance now that everyone in the guild calls me by that! I have a name!"

"I'll stop calling you Princess when you stop acting like a spoiled brat!"

"Funny words coming from someone who isn't even a guild member."

"I work here!"

"I train here."

"Rrgh!"

"Hmph."

A thick tension settled over the two of them as they glared daggers at each other. It seemed like the two of them were about to jump at each others' throats at any moment. To everyone else in the room, it felt as though two blazing bonfires had been lit behind the girls, each trying to outdo and consume the other.

"Perhaps if you spent more time honing your skills rather than flirting and ogling, you'd be able to accomplish more here than cleaning and organizing!" Feyley snarled. "You are wasting your potential with these frivolities!"

Kirlia brushed her hair back and sneered, "And if _you_ spent more time caring about yourself, I wouldn't have to bother with you! I mean, look at you! Your fur's a mess, your face's marred with blemishes and your whiskers are all tangled! You say I'm wasting my potential? Then how about you?"

"My potential of what?" Feyley snorted. She flicked two punches into the air and kicked her right leg high, "I do not care about being _pretty_ like you! I'm a warrior! A warrior indeed!"

Kirlia clicked her tongue and snapped her gaze toward Blue, startling him. "Don't you think it's a shame that she's like this, Riolu? This girl could stand to be much cuter, don't you think?"

"Don't you dare say a word, Riolu!" Feyley snarled in response. "Or else!"

"Erm!" Blue felt a shiver rush down his spine as both Feyley and Kirlia directed their flaming hot glares right at him. Once again, he felt like he was being forced to pick between two undesirable options. For one, he didn't even know what he was being asked. For another, he had no clue as to why they're even asking him!

"Well?"

"Riolu!"

Blue gulped down the lump in his throat and backed away. He turned toward his partner and his friend, his eyes begging for help. Fée and Brin turned toward him, their noses raised high and their lips pursed. An expression Blue hadn't expected to see from the two, friendly girls he had come to know.

"Wow. You're really popular all of a sudden, Blue," Fée remarked in a cool, dull voice. She turned to Brin and made a big show of tilting her head out of curiosity, "Gee. I wonder why that is?"

The Braixen giggled and folded her arms, tilting her head as well to mimic Fée's movement.

"Brin, maybe we should go and leave him here and go visit Duskull," Fée suggested. "he seems like he's in good company."

"Hee..." Brin held her hand over her mouth as she tried to muffle her mirth. The two girls shared a quick smirk between each other as they watched Blue's horrified expression out of the corners of their eyes.

"Y – you two..." feeling abandoned, Blue let his arms and ears flop down as he let out a depressed, defeated sigh. As he stared at the clay floor, Blue pondered whether it was possible for him to dig a hole in the floor with his paws and scream in it until he understood just what was going on.

_Clap!_

Everyone in the room leapt off the ground from the noise of that explosive slap. Hariyama, having seen and heard enough, folded his arms before his chest and planted himself in between Feyley and Kirlia; his expression, stern.

"Kirlia," Hariyama said in a low voice, making the white – dressed girl tremble. "as you are not a member of this guild, I hold no authority to scold you. However, I will _suggest_ that you _do not_ criticize the lifestyles of others – especially that of Feyley, who is new to this town. Do you understand?"

Kirlia gave Hariyama a meek nod, and backed away. Hariyama then turned toward Feyley, who was wearing a smirk on her face.

"Feyley, that sentiment extends to you as well," he stated, making the Mienfoo's smirk vanish in an instant, "while I am aware you come from a land with far different culture than ours, I would advise you to try and be more accommodating when Kirlia is helping you fit in our town. Furthermore, I will not tolerate you looking down upon others like this. Do you understand?"

"B – but..." Feyley tried to argue back, but one look at the heavyset Pokémon's face made her reconsider. She dropped her head and nodded, "Yes master. I understand. I will strive to do better in the future."

"Very good. Now then," Hariyama cleared his throat and gestured for Blue to come over and stand beside him. Feeling thankful that he was freed from the awkward situation, the Riolu complied, taking his place opposite Feyley.

"Feyley," Hariyama patted the Mienfoo on the shoulder. "as this challenge was your idea, why don't you inform your opponent the rules of this place?"

"Yes, master." Feyley said, holding her fist before her chest. She strode out from Hariyama's side and pressed her fist against Blue's chest. "Listen up, Riolu. This will be a one on one duel, no assistance allowed on either side."

She held up two fingers and pointed at his eyes, "There will be no striking at vulnerable points: no eyes, no behind the head," she moved her paw down to his belly and gestured to his groin. "and no hitting below the waist. Combat will continue until one side concedes defeat or is deemed unfit to fight."

"I see..." Blue mimicked Feyley's actions, pressing his fist against her chest, gesturing to her eyes, pointing at her groi–.

_Wham!_

"Guah!"

"That is all!" Feyley snarled, her face a searing scarlet as she covered herself up with her paws. "Master Hariyama, may we begin now?"

"Once your opponent is back on his feet and not groaning in pain, then we may begin."

Nodding, Feyley shot the twitching Blue a scornful look before trotting over to the other side of the training room with her white box held beneath her arm. After giving Blue a quick look – over to see if he was alright, Hariyama followed after the Mienfoo.

"Bwahaha!" Machoke chortled and threw his beefy arms over Kirlia and Gothorita's shoulders. "Show's about to begin! Why don't we grab a seat at the sides and get ready?"

"Anything you say, Guildmaster Machoke!" Gothorita squealed with surprising eagerness.

"Eh? So that's what this is all about?" Kirlia covered her face and giggled. "Really... the Princess versus him? This is going to be exciting!" She raised her arm and waved at the groaning Riolu on the ground, "I'm rooting for you! Teach that bratty Mienfoo a lesson!"

"Ergh..."

* * *

Blue stared up at the training room's ceiling, counting the innumerable glowing crystals embedded in the gray stone high above. It resembled the night sky, filled with bright, twinkling stars. One... two... three...

Feyley's blow to his gut wasn't all that painful, but it was still intense enough to knock him off his feet. As he laid his back on the cold, clay floor, he could hear faint snippets of conversation between Feyley and her master. Mutterings about fighting, strategies and how to best beat that Riolu's face in.

Once again, he wondered if all of this pain could've been avoided if he had just came clean earlier and admitted to his lie. Tapping his forehead with his paw, he thought back to when he first fought Feyley back at the Battle Royale. His leg was still in a horrid state at the time, which made that fight more of a desperate run and tumble act than an actual duel.

And yet, Feyley seems to regard it as something important to her.

Sighing, Blue pushed his torso off the ground and dusted his head off. There was no helping it now, he figured. He glanced over at Feyley and Hariyama. The two of them seemed to be doing something with the white box she had bought from Meowstic's, but he couldn't quite see what it was from behind Hariyama's large frame.

"Hey, are you alright?"

The face of his partner loomed over his vision, drawing away his gaze. While she had been somewhat teasing of him earlier, Fée's expression now showed nothing but concern and worry. The Eevee wedged her head underneath his arm, giving him a boost back onto his feet.

"I'm fine," Blue said, pushing himself off of her. "she just tapped me, that's all."

"I wouldn't consider that just a 'tap,' Blue," Fée retorted with a wry smile. "Are you sure you're fine? Did you hit your head?"

"Gee, now you're worried?" he poked Fée in the forehead. "You were all but leaving me to suffer alone earlier. Both of you."

Fée and Brin both giggled at his sour remark.

"You never did explain how you got into this situation, Blue." Fée said, bumping against his side with her tail. "Brin and I are still in the dark here about what happened between you and that Mienfoo, you know."

Blue scratched the back of his head and frowned, "Mmrgh... I meant to tell you guys earlier in the corridor, but everyone got distracted in the end." He sighed and shook his head, "What I can tell you now is that I–"

"Have to fight her, right?" Fée finished for him with a worried smile. "I pretty much got the gist of that by listening to everything going on. Is there no way you can refuse?"

Blue glanced over to Feyley and Hariyama again. The Mienfoo was pounding her fist into her palm, over and over again.

"Probably not."

The Eevee rubbed her paw over her ribbon and pondered for a moment.

"I have to wonder just what you did to make her so mad," Fée asked, glancing over at Feyley. "she seems like she really, really wants to take a bite out of you, Blue."

"...just a bite?" Blue let out a hollow chuckle and rubbed his collar. "Honestly... it's really not a big deal. At least, I don't think it is."

"Blue. I don't want to see you get hurt."

Chuckling, Blue patted Fée on the head with his paw, "Look. It wont be as bad as all the other times I fought before. I have both of my legs this time, and I'm still feeling pumped up from being healed by Brin. I'll try to finish this as fast as I can so we can bring Brin back home, and get some of that delicious bread from Duskull!"

"I'll hold you to that," Fée replied, pressing her paw against his chest. "I believe in you, after all. Just... be careful, alright? I don't want to see you getting hurt again, especially after Brin fixed you up."

Brin agreed with Fée's sentiment, nodding while crossing her arms before her chest. She walked up to Blue and knelt in front of him, putting their faces at eye level. She took her hand and placed it firmly against his chest, feeling his heart beat against her palm.

Though it had been about a day or so by now, Brin could still feel the residual heat from her aura radiating inside of him. Like a little mischievous ember of flame, it flickered and danced inside of his body. While she wasn't too fond of the idea of her friend getting into yet another fight so soon, she knew that he had no choice either way.

"Brin?" Blue voice drew Brin away from her thoughts. "What's the matter?"

Shaking her head, Brin patted him on the shoulders, chest and sides, as if she was checking him over for any injuries. When was she finished, the Braixen smiled back at him and poked him in the chest with a finger before standing back up and giving him a playful poke him in the chest.

Even if he got hurt, she reasoned, she'll be there to patch him back up. Her aura... her so called _Panacea_... while it worried her to be using her gift in such a callous fashion, she had no reason to doubt her friends. So what if she got exhausted or achy after healing one of them? As long as they were fine, she would be happy.

Besides, it didn't sting that much to cure Fée's paralysis earlier. Maybe... just maybe, if she were to use it more often, she might be able to control it a little better...

Feeling a little gleeful at the thought of that, Brin hid her smile behind her hand and giggled.

"Someone's happy," Blue said, poking Brin back in the belly. "are you looking forward to meeting Duskull again?"

"Mn..." Brin shook her head. But then, she thought about it mid – shake, and tried to correct it by nodding instead. She ended up doing some kind of strange, diagonal nod – shake by trying to do both simultaneously.

"Ehe... what are you doing, Brin?" Fée said, patting the blushing Braixen on the leg. "Come on, let's go grab a seat at the benches over there so Blue can get ready."

Brin nodded and made her way over to the benches where Machoke, Kirlia and Gothorita sat. Fée made to follow her, but stopped for a moment. Thinking, she turned around and looked at Blue again, who was warming himself up by boxing the air.

"Hey, Blue," she said to him. "good luck."

* * *

Now standing by himself at his end of the training room, Blue took a deep breath and began to warm himself up for the fight. He loosened the muscles in his arms, cracked his neck and rotated his shoulders a bit.

He gave extra attention to his right leg in particular. A small feeling of glee entered his mind as he ran his paws through the smooth, thin black fur that covered his leg. There were no scars, no wounds and no bruises. It had been the first time he have had both of his legs in pristine condition since Fée dragged him out of the ocean a few days ago.

"Hm..." a smirk crossed his features as he straightened his back. He stamped the ground with his right foot. No pain, no numbness. He pounded his fist into his palm. Everything was there. He could fight. There was nothing holding him back anymore.

_If I remember correctly..._ Blue began to think back to when he first fought the Mienfoo – back during the big Battle Royale in town. _All she really did was try to hurl herself at me, foot first. Those flying kicks seriously hurt, but they were easy to see coming..._

He tapped his toe against the floor and smiled, _Well, now that I can actually move, dealing with those kicks shouldn't be too hard._

"Blue, are you ready?"

The Riolu's ears perked up when he heard Hariyama addressing him from across the room. Feyley was standing at her side of the arena, her arms raised and her gaze serious. For some odd reason, Blue noticed, there appeared to be two long white pieces of cloth wrapped around her wrists. It reminded him of the scarf that Fée was enamored with back at Meowstic's store, except this pair were far longer than the scarf was – long enough to be trailing onto the floor.

_That's new... i__s she thinking of cleaning the floor before we fight?_ Blue thought wildly. _Or are her __paws__ just cold?_

"Do you need some more time for preparation?"

Snapping himself out of his idle thoughts, Blue gave Hariyama a quick shake of his head and got into a fighting stance. While he was still curious about the strange strips of white on the Mienfoo's paws, Blue figured that he had more important things to worry about. Like how said Mienfoo seemed to be trying to bore a hole through his chest by the sheer intensity of her glare alone.

_Here goes nothing..._

"Remember the rules of this duel, the two of you." Hariyama stated as he raised his arm. "On my signal, the battle between Blue and Feyley will commence. Are the two of you ready?" He shot both Blue and Feyley a quick glance, receiving a nod back from both of them.

"Very well... _begin!_"

Without even waiting for Hariyama to swing down his arm, Blue launched himself toward his opponent. Like a bolt of lightning, Blue charged across the clay with his fists already drawn back. Within seconds, he had reached Feyley's side of the arena. The Meinfoo's stunned expression filled his gaze as he sent his right fist rocketing toward her chest.

_Take her down before she can even attack!_

_Wham!_

"Gah!" Feyley held up both of her arms in front of her chest just in time, lessening the force of Blue's furious blow. But even that wasn't enough to fully reduce the damage. The heels of her feet skidded against the clay floor as she was sent sliding a few inches backward.

Feyley grimaces as she struggled to lower her arms. It felt like a thousand stinging nettles had stabbed into them, rendering her nerves screaming and unresponsive. What an explosive blow! The Riolu was strong... strong indeed! Growling, she opened her mouth and bit down – hard – on her forearm.

"Haaah!"

Not wanting to give his opponent the chance to recover, Blue closed the distance between them with a short leap forward. He held his fist over his head, readying for a heavy blow to her collarbone from above.

The bite did the trick. The short spasm of pain in her arm washed away the dull feeling in her nerves. Now back in control of her limbs, Feyley snapped her gaze up toward the descending Riolu in front of her A smirk crossed her face. Taking a defensive stance, she leaned her upper body backward and crossed both of her arms above her head. The long scarves tied to her wrists fluttered beside her like a pair of long curtains.

"Eat this!" his fist fast closing in on the Mienfoo, Blue put all his strength behind his downward blow. But, right before his paw made contact with her chest, Feyley uncrossed her arms. Both of the long cloths attached to her wrists whipped upward, wrapping themselves around Blue's outstretched fist like a silken lasso.

"Wha –?!"

Blue's momentum vanished in a blink of an eye. Blue glanced down at his arm, perplexed as to why he was just standing still now. To his utter surprise, Feyley's scarves had bound themselves to his wrist. He tried to pull himself out of the strange clutch, but the long, silken cloths held fast, trapping his arm like a Pinsir's vise.

"What is this?!" Blue said, astounded by how strong the cloth was. He tried once more to pull

"You surprised me with that quick blow earlier..." Feyley said, disregarding his question. "but even a child could've seen such an obvious attack like that coming!"

As if to prove her point, Feyley raised up her right knee and slammed it deep into Blue's gut.

"Guagh!"

Feyley's terrific blow blasted the wind out of his lungs, forcing him to crumple forward out of pain. Then, while he was still reeling from the blow, Feyley released his wrist and planted her palm against his chest in one single, smooth motion.

"_Hah!_" she hurled her entire weight into her arm, sending an immense force down through her palm and into Blue's body. An invisible explosion erupted out from between them, sending the Riolu spiraling away across the arena like a rag doll.

_What in the world was that?_ Blue thought as he watched Feyley's outline get farther and farther away.

Blue slammed his paws onto the floor, scraping against the clay to slow himself down. He glanced back up at Feyley, who was now standing a few feet away from chest throbbed a bit as he got off the ground. The feeling he got from her counter attack was like taking a hammer to the chest, despite his opponent not having thrown a single punch at him at all.

_Did she use the wind to blow me away, like Zubat's attacks?_ Blue wondered as he took another deep breath. He shook his head as he recalled how Zubat attacked him yesterday, _No... I don't feel any cuts on my body, and she definitely wasn't swinging her arms around like his wings..._

_All she did was touch my chest, and it sent me flying. Just what was that?_

"Tch," unable to figure it out, Blue patted his chest and looked down. A few strands of his fur were darkened, looking as though they had been singed by fire. He narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Are you giving up already?" Feyley shouted from across the room, drawing his attention back to her. She had her arms folded across her chest, and a small smirk was gleaming on her face.

Scowling, he shook some loose clay off his paws and clenched them into fists as he got back into a fighting stance. The Mienfoo's smirk grew wider as she did the same.

_She effortlessly blocked my punch earlier __with those weird scarves__,_ he thought. _I can't just rush in like I usually do. I'll need to figure something out._

While keeping his eyes trained on Feyley, he began to walk toward her instead of breaking into a run. Feyley, on the other hand, stayed her ground and did not move. As the Riolu continued to stalk toward her, something caught his eye. The faint twitching of her paws, and the shaking of those cloths...

_Her arms... they're still shaking!_ _That first strike must've left some lasting damage._ _If that's the case, then I have an idea..._

With this tidbit of info glowing inside his mind, he felt a small smirk crawl its way onto his face. He lowered his posture so that he head was level to his torso. In response, Feyley raised her arms higher up her chest, covering the front of her body with her long cloths. After taking yet another slow step toward Feyley, he stamped his foot into the ground and broke into a dash.

"Another sneak attack?!" Feyley was ready for it this time. She crossed her arms in front of her again – the same defensive stance she took before – and prepared herself for the oncoming blow.

"Block this!"

Blue halted himself right in front of Feyley, not throwing any punches toward her raised guard. Instead, he reached his paws out to the side, sneaking around her defense and grabbing onto her sides.

"Hieeh!?" A ticklish feeling snaked through Feyley's body, sending an involuntary shudder down her spine. Blushing, she tried to move her arms down to stop Blue from grappling her. However, the numbness in her arms had resurfaced, preventing her from being able to move more than a few inches.

This didn't go unnoticed by Blue. Taking this chance, he slammed the top of his head into Feyley's paws, knocking her guard away. Then, while she was still stunned by his attack, he released his grip on her sides and spun around so his back was facing her.

"Hah!" With a hearty shout, he struck her in the chest with the back of his shoulder. The force behind his shoulder thrust popped the Mienfoo's feet off the ground, sending her flying up and away from her assailant. Not ready to let up just yet, Blue raced in and stuck his right arm in the air – grabbing Feyley by the paw and pulling her back down to the ground while readying his left fist to strike her as she fell.

But, right when Feyley was about to fall right onto his fist, she kicked out with her foot and struck Blue underneath his chin. Letting out a yelp of pain, Blue was forced to release his grip on Feyley's paw. Now freed from his grasp, Feyley landed back on her feet and nipped at her forearms again – one bite for each arm. Snarling, the Mienfoo extended both of her arms out to her side and rushed toward her opponent.

_Whap! Whap! Whap!_

Quashing down her numbness through sheer force of will, Feyley began to spin her arms around her like a cyclone. Streaks of white cut through the air as her cloths whipped around her, lashing Blue over and over again in a maelstrom of silk.

"Tch...!" Gritting his teeth, Blue planted his feet firm on the ground and leapt back to avoid her silken strikes. However, just a single step backward wasn't enough to escape her range. The tip of one of her cloths lashed him on the tip of his muzzle, forcing him to wince from the throbbing pain.

"Yow!" Blue grunted in pain as he clutched his glowing red nose.

While he was dancing about with his throbbing snout, Feyley quickly closed the distance between them and swung her right arm. The momentum from her swipe sent her cloth whirling toward his head. Blackness covered his entire vision, reducing Blue to stumble around like a fool while trying to dislodge the white cloth from his head. But tug as he might, it was just bound too tight for him to pull off with his paws.

"I thought we weren't allowed to go for the eyes!" Blue shouted through the silk.

"Are you blind?" Feyley snarled back. "I'm not attacking your eyes, you fool!"

While Blue was indisposed with his blindfold, Feyley grabbed onto her right wrist with her left paw. Her eyes closed, and she took in a long breath of air. When she exhaled, heat from various points in her body began to congregate within the center of her right palm. Once enough heat had emerged, a small spark of blue flashed inside her paw, drawing her eyes back open.

She grabbed a hold of her cloth and pulled on it, hard. Blue was thrown off balance by the sudden yank, forcing him to stumble toward Feyley in his blindness. Once her opponent was close enough, Feyley pulled on her cloth again and unraveled the blind around his eyes.

"Gah!" Bright light flooded into the Riolu's eyes, sending multicolored balls erupting all over his vision. His paws shot up to rub his eyes on instinct, leaving his body unguarded. By the time the Riolu had realized his mistake, it was already too late.

Feyley pressed her right palm up against Blue's exposed chest once more. The gathered heat within her paw began to sear the tips of Blue's fur. Once again, she threw the entirety of her weight into her right arm, causing a great explosion of force and flame that blew the Riolu away.

"Again?!" Blue howled as he struggled with straightening himself in midair. Chunks of clay flew off the floor as he landed back onto the ground. Coughing, he spat onto the floor and took a deep breath to calm his nerves.

The spot on his chest where she had struck him again was now glowing, burning with a bright blue flame. Frowning, he planted a paw over his chest, dousing the heated spot. To his surprise, he felt no pain from the fire itself. Instead, he only felt the dull ache from having something heavy slammed into him. There was a darkened, palm – shaped imprint marring his chest, but other than that, he felt nothing else.

When he looked back up, he saw sparks – faint embers of blue flame surrounding Feyley. She raised her right paw to her lips and blew away the remaining wisps of heat that remained on her palm before returning to a fighting stance. Her two long, scarf – like cloths flowed around her as she moved. An elegant, yet deadly weapon.

_Just what kind of power does she hold?_ Blue growled to himself as he stared at Feyley's glowing palms. _I've never seen anything like this before..._

He glanced down at his own paws. There was a tiny sliver of blue flame nestled within the fur on his right paw. Could he do the same? Maybe it was some kind of strange trick regarding palms and chests, he reasoned. He clenched his fist, crushing the ember, and put on a devious smirk. No harm in giving it a shot, he figured.

"Feyley!" He shouted. He jabbed a finger toward something over in the distance, "What's that over there?!"

"Huh?" To his surprise, the Mienfoo fell for his cheap tactics. She turned her head around, staring at the stone wall behind her.

"Chance!"

Holding back the mischievous laughter that was trying to escape his lips, Blue rushed forward and planted his palm against Feyley's chest. His muscles began to tense with excitement as he grabbed onto his right wrist with his left paw. He recalled how Feyley blasted him away earlier, and sought to recreate that motion. Opening his mouth, he bellowed out a great shout!

"_Haaah__!_"

...silence. Nothing happened when he threw his weight into his arm. He managed to shove Feyley back a few inches, but that was all. No explosion, no blue flames... just silence.

"What are you doing?"

"Wha...?" Blue retracted his paw and stared at it, confused. He shook his arm, then looked back down at his palm. No flames, no explosion, nothing. "Why didn't it work? I mimicked your motions perfectly!"

"You..."

A chill rushed down Blue's spine when he heard Feyley's voice. Her paw gripped his wrist tight, forcing his palm off her chest. A lump formed in his throat when he saw the look on Feyley's face. She had on a glare that could freeze even a Magcargo!

Her right palm flared up with a blue flame, raging and blazing bright as if mirroring her unbridled fury. She slammed it against Blue's chest with an extreme force, forcing a cough out of his throat and his eyes to bulge.

"Just what is going through that empty crate you call a head?" Feyley snarled as she shoved her palm even deeper into his gut. "What in the world made you think you could just copy my technique?!"

"W – well... I just assumed..."

_Blam!_

Whatever excuse Blue was about say was interrupted by a blast of flame to his chest. Blue let out a despondent sigh as he was sent soaring away again.

* * *

"A – ah...!"

Brin noticed something – something familiar to her. Her widened eyes reflected the glowing blue sparks that littered the air around the two combatants. Those flames... those embers... were they not the same kind of flames that she used in order to perform her gift?

"A – au..."

Aura. That's what it was. Blue's opponent was striking him with an invisible power, a power formed by the user's own energy! To Brin, this was an utter shock. To imagine that someone else out there in this world had the same kind of ability as she did... it was astounding!

Brin clutched the fur on her chest and bit her lip as she watched Feyley brush away a single ember of flame off her shoulder. The way that Mienfoo controlled her aura – the very energy that flowed through her body – impressed her. Seeing Feyley fight using it got Brin thinking. Could she also use the Panacea that way? She could heal others – of course – but what else could she do with her aura? At least, what else could she do without exhausting herself?

"The Princess is really kicking butt, isn't she?"

Kirlia's voice pulled Brin out of her thoughts. Sitting at the other side of her and Fée, on the opposite end of the bench, was Kirlia and her friend, Gothorita. For some odd reason, Machoke was laying down on the ground behind the bench, doing push ups instead of sitting like everyone else.

"I would imagine," Gothorita replied. "she did come from that warrior village high atop Mount Travail, after all. It'd be a shame if she could not... 'kick butt.'"

"A warrior Princess!" Kirlia said, clapping her hands together. "I never want to visit that place if it's full of Pokémon like the Princess. It must be the dullest, drabbest place in the entire frontier!"

Gothorita sighed and clapped her palm over her face.

"I don't understand..." Fée said. She grasped the strap of her Explorer's Pack and wrung it with her paws, "Just what did she do to Blue? I couldn't see any punches being thrown at all!"

She turned to Brin and asked, "What do you think, Brin? Did you see how Feyley attacked him?"

Brin clutched her wrist and nibbled on her finger. She knew what it was that the Mienfoo was using, but just how can she explain it to her friend? It wasn't the simplest thing to explain... but she had to try somehow. Brin's hand went up to her throat. Maybe she could try speaking...?

"F – Fée... a... aur..." she tried to force the words out of her mouth, but speaking every syllable felt like she was swallowing stinging nettles. "uuraa–"

"Ah!" Kirlia spoke up all of a sudden, interrupting Brin's attempt to talk. The white – dressed girl clapped her hands over her mouth, her eyes wide and her cheeks paler than usual. "No way!"

"W – what is it?" Fée asked, surprised by her outburst. "Do you know what it was that Feyley used?"

Kirlia held up her finger and pointed it at Feyley, "No! It's something far more important than that!"

"More important?" Fée echoed, looking confused. "What could be more important than this?"

"W – what if they end up falling for each other after the battle?!" Kirlia stammered, clutching her cheeks in horror. "The stubborn Princess and my Riolu... that would be devastating for everyone involved!"

"...huh?" Fée blinked. That wasn't what she had expected to hear at all. For a moment, Fée hesitated to ask Kirlia to explain what she meant. But – much to her consternation – her curiosity got the better of her in the end.

"What do you mean by... 'falling for each other?'"

"Hm, hm..." Feeling smug, Kirlia spun around in her seat and held up a finger to the confused Eevee. "Allow me to enlighten you, Bookee!"

A look of displeasure shot across Fée's face when she heard that name, but Kirlia – all wrapped up in her delusions – hadn't noticed.

"Hm, hm... it's a common scenario that happens in all kinds of stories!" Kirlia folded her arms and gave the annoyed – looking Eevee a dramatic nod. "Picture this... two longtime rivals, facing off against each other while a burning sunset illuminates the field around them. They lock eyes, fierce determination burning hot behind their stoic visages..."

"A single leaf touches the ground, and they spring into action. Feet touch the ground, fist touch fur... the two of them become embroiled in a spectacular ballet of courage underneath the orange heavens! And then... at the end of it all... both warriors fall to the ground, side by side. One looks over and they look into each others eyes..."

"I think I know where this is going..." Fée grumbled under her breath.

"And they say to each other: 'that was a great fight, partner!' 'Yes it was, partner!' And the two of them shake hands as the sun sets behind them!" Kirlia finished. "Ah! How romantic! I'm surprised you don't recognize this pattern, Bookee! It happens in any story where there's a fight between two Pokémon!"

"Not every story has an ending like that..."

Fée sighed out of irritation. Sure, she had read several books that had endings like that, but those were just stories. Not even an avid book lover like her would imagine such a cliché ending like that would happen for real.

For one, they were indoors. So there was no way for Blue and Feyley to be fighting under a 'burning sunset.' Second, the battle was nowhere near as romantic as Kirlia had made it out to be. If anything, it was more of a one – sided beat down than a 'spectacular ballet of courage.' Shaking her head, Fée let out a disgusted grumble and scooted herself father away from the delusional girl.

Brin tapped her finger against her chin, tilting her head to the side out of confusion. She glanced over at Fée, wondering just what the Kirlia was talking about. Brin thought about asking Fée for an explanation, but one look at the Eevee's odd, sour expression made her think twice about it.

"Gah!"

A loud shout from the arena drew Brin's attention back to the battle at hand. Like before, Blue was sent flying away by another aura – infused blow by Feyley. The Riolu landed amidst a pile of glowing embers, scattering light all around the training room. Snarling, he flipped off the floor with his fist outstretched in an attempt to counterattack.

_Whap!_

Brin winced when she saw Blue get smashed back down into the floor as Feyley swung her cloth down on his head. In a single, fluid motion, the Mienfoo reached down and yanked him up by his collar. A surge of aura emerged from within Feyley's fist, coating it in a brilliant blue flame.

"_Hah!_"

Blue attempted to guard the blow by crossing his arms in front of his chest, but it was of no use. A palm was slammed against his guard, and a shining spear of blue flame pierced straight through his forearms. For the fourth time since the battle started, Blue was sent spiraling away like a rag doll. He tried to land back on his feet, but ended up planting his muzzle into the clay.

"Pathetic!" Feyley shouted. "Where was the drive you showed when you first fought me? Is this really all you can do? I'm disappointed, Riolu! Disappointed indeed!"

Brin watched as Feyley retracted her fist, straightening out her fingers and letting the remaining embers of aura flutter off her fur. But, as the Mienfoo tried to clench her fist again, something gleaming caught Brin's eye. Small beads of sweat were trailing down her face, dripping onto the floor below her. Despite being able to counter all of Blue's attacks in an almost effortless manner, why did she look like she was exhausted?

A single spark of blue flame flashed bright for a split second, extinguishing itself before Brin's eyes. And then, it dawned on her.

Aura. The energy that flowed within one's body. When Brin used her Panacea to heal others, she was pulling her own aura out to form a salve for the injured. For Feyley... she was using her aura to bolster her own strikes. While Feyley's ability was nowhere near as self – sacrificing as Brin's Panacea was, it would come to reason that both of their abilities ran on the same principle.

_'__Impressive! So you've figured out the Princess' power?'_

"A – aah?!"

A boisterous voice erupted inside of the Braixen's head, making her jump off the bench out of shock. Nervous, she clung to her skirt as she glanced around the bench, startled at the sudden intrusion inside her thoughts.

"Brin?" Fée looked up at her friend, surprised. "What's the matter?"

"N – nng..." Brin shook her head and sat back down on the bench. Her hands went up to her head, rubbing her cheek as she tried to figure out who it was that spoke to her.

_ 'Don't be so surprised, Braixen girl! Something as easy as telepathic conversation is nothing to somebody as skilled as I am! Bwahaha!'_

Even though she hadn't been in this town for long, there was no mistaking that unforgettable – and rather obnoxious, in her opinion, – laugh. She turned around and looked behind the bench. Guildmaster Machoke was still there, lying on the floor and doing push ups with a single arm.

_ 'That Feyley... to think that she had such a dynamic secret weapon hidden behind that pretty face of hers. No wonder Hariyama was so insistent on taking her as his disciple back then! I'm jealous, and annoyed now!'_

Brin continued to hold onto her cheeks as she replied back to the odd stranger in her mind, _'__W – what are you talking about...?' _

_'__Aura, of course!' _Machoke's laugh echoed inside her mind, making her wince from the sheer volume of his mental 'voice'. _'Not many Pokémon here in Treasure Town... well, not many Pokémon in general really, know about the existence of aura. For good reason, of course! Bwahah!'_

_'__S – so then...?'_

Machoke turned his head around and flashed Brin a bright smile, _'C'mon, Braixen girl. You're far smarter than I am. You know the answer, right?'_

Brin thought back to all the times she collapsed and fainted whenever she used the power of the Panacea, _'__The more she uses her aura like this... the more she's exhausting herself!'_

_'__Quite a self defeating power, isn't it?'_ Machoke replied._ 'I don't know your story, but you seem to have a good grasp of how aura works. Good on you, girlie! __But, a__s you can clearly see, Feyley doesn't. This'll be a good lesson for her, so I'd like you to keep quiet about this for the time being, mm'kay?'_

_'__B – but, Blue...'_

_'__Bwahahah!'_ The Guildmaster hopped onto his feet and struck a pose. _'You shouldn't write him off that quickly! If he's any bit the Pokémon I believe he is, I'm sure he can handle a few blasts and burns! Bwahaha!"_

Leaving behind one last ringing laugh, Machoke left Brin's mind and plopped himself down in between Kirlia and Gothorita. The inside of her head pounding, Brin pinched her temple and let out a deep sigh. There really were a lot of different Pokémon outside of the forest... wasn't there? How strange...

Still... what Guildmaster Machoke said was true. If Feyley's aura worked on the same rules as hers, then there is no doubt in her mind that the Mienfoo would be running out of strength before long. And when that happens...

"Brin, look!" Fée grabbed onto her friend as she pointed at the arena. Her mouth was curled up in a great big smile as she shook Brin's arm, "Blue's fighting back! He finally broke past her scarves!"

Of course he did. Brin covered her face with her hands and giggled. Closing her eyes, she sent a telepathic cheer over to where Blue was. While there was no guarantee that he'd receive it, it made no difference to the hopeful Braixen.

'You can do it, Blue!'

* * *

Every square inch of his body felt like it was on fire. Stinging bruises, irritating lashes and glowering red cuts covered his arms and legs. While it wasn't anything he couldn't stomach, the lasting damage from being unable to dodge those annoying whips was beginning to build up. It was like his limbs were becoming heavier and heavier with every attack he took – as if he was sinking ever deeper into a pit of sludge.

Growling, Blue grit his teeth as Feyley unloaded another barrage of cloth strikes at him. He ducked under a horizontal swipe, but he couldn't jump out of the way of a second, diagonal, attack. The long scarf slapped against his thigh, leaving behind an angry red bruise on his rump.

As the Mienfoo retracted her cloth whips to prepare for another assault, Blue took this chance to spring at her. Baring his teeth, he shoved his fist far ahead of him – planning to slam it into Feyley's face with the power of his momentum.

"Predictable!" Feyley sneered as she saw the battered Riolu rushing at her again. She ducked low under his reckless attack, letting his fist sail over her head. She opened her right palm, gathering her aura within it for another knockback blow.

"Guh...!" Realizing his mistake, Blue tensed up the muscles in his belly to try and withstand the blow. Feyley shoved her palm upward into his gut, transmitting her aura through her arm and into his body. An explosion of flame and force burst out between the two, sending the Riolu upward toward the ceiling.

"You just never learn, do you?" Feyley remarked as she watched him fumble around in the air. She leaned back and extended her right leg as he began to fall back down toward the floor. Right before Blue became a crater in the ground, Feyley caught him with a powerful spin kick to the midsection.

"Gack!" Blue gasped as he felt the air be kicked out of his lungs. He doubled over, clutching his belly as he hit the clay in a heap. His paw went up to his chest as he inhaled to replace the missing air in his system.

Feyley watched as she stood above him, letting the crumpled Riolu catch his breath after his latest failed attempt. She had already returned to her fighting stance, her cloth whips dangling in front of her body. Beads of sweat were forming on her temples, and little wisps of blue flame were leaking out into the air from in between her fingers.

Clicking her tongue, she tried to clench her fist to stem the outward flow of her aura. But it had little effect. She had opened the dam to her reservoir of inner strength, but now the flood of her aura was far too intense for her close. By using her power, she had set a time limit on herself. She needed to end this as soon as possible, otherwise she'd be the one of the floor instead of him!

"Gotcha!"

Feyley's momentary lapse in attention was all Blue needed. He swept out with his leg, catching Feyley's shin with his foot. The Mienfoo let out a sharp squeak as she hopped off the floor on one foot, nursing her other with her paws. Not giving up this chance, Blue scrambled off the floor and rushed in while Feyley was still distracted with her stinging shin.

"Hah!" Blue threw a jab at Feyley's chest, trying to knock her down with a single blow. However, his aim was off, and his fist glanced off her shoulder instead, achieving nothing at all. Cursing his bad luck, Blue hurried to pull back his arm to try again.

"As if I'd let you!" Feyley snarled. Releasing her foot so she could use her paws, she swept her cloths upward, wrapping them around his outstretched limb. Once Blue was bound by her attacks again, her aura flared up within her palm. Feyley loud howl as she shoved her burning paw forward.

"Gotcha again!"

Before Feyley could plant her palms on his chest though, her captive rushed forward and crashed his chest into hers. Then, with his free arm, Blue wrapped it around Feyley's long cloth whips and pulled her even closer to him. With hardly any space left between their bodies, Feyley's aura – infused palm had no target to hit!

"L – let me go!" Struggling, Feyley attempted to separate herself from him, but it was no use. By wrapping his own arm around her whips, he had somehow managed to trap her own arm as well! She couldn't escape from his clutch, no matter how hard she tugged and yanked against his grip.

"I still have no idea what kind of strange attack you're using against me, but I know that you need to touch my torso to get it work!" Blue said, smirking into her scowl as he tightened his grip. "You can't hit me when we're this close. Can you? And even if you could hit me with it, you'll be sending yourself flying along with me!"

"Y – you...!" When she looked up at him, all she could see was her own furious face being reflected in his crimson eyes. She felt appalled and indignant that this forgetful Riolu had figured out her attack. Feyley bared her fangs and tried again to untangle herself from his grapple. But the Riolu held fast, not letting her gain even an inch. He wasn't going to let her go, no matter what!

As she continued to struggle against her opponent, she felt a spasm of pain run through her arm. A jolt of panic rushed through the Mienfoo's mind, drawing her gaze toward her glowing palm. The aura that was building up within her paw was growing hotter and hotter by the second, covering almost up to her wrist in a radiant blue glow. Panicking, she tried to stem the flow of aura that was cascading down her arm, but it was too late. The dam had burst, and there was no stopping it now.

She needed to release it! It doesn't matter where, she just needed to get rid of this heat before she ended up burning herself! Her eyes darted around in a panic as she tried to find a target – any target at all. Her opponent was holding onto her in such a tight embrace, there was no way she could disentangle herself and expel this energy in this instant.

Tears were forming in her eyes as the flame in her palm intensified. Whatever options she had remaining were dwindling. She had to act fast! Her eyes darted around the two of them. She couldn't strike the Riolu, doing so would only send her barreling away along with him! If only he wasn't holding onto her cloths... then she could escape!

…wait! That's it!

"Gyaaaaah!" She screamed as she pulled her body back as much as possible. She stretched out her cloth whips, revealing a sliver of silk stretching out between them. Then, Before Blue could even fathom what she was planning, she took her blazing palm and pressed it against the soft fabric.

_Blam! __Scrrrip!_

The explosive force from her aura burned into and destroyed the cloth, letting Feyley tear herself away from Blue's clutch. The sudden separation and impact from the blow threw the two of them backward. Blue and Feyley both fell on the floor several feet away from each other, while torn pieces of what remained of Feyley's cloth whips fluttered down to the ground between them.

"G... gahh..." Blue winced as he rubbed his sore behind. He hadn't expected her to destroy her own weapon like that. But from the looks of it, everything that had happened was in his favor. Her cloth whips were in tatters, and she looked like she was exhausted after that desperate attempt to separate them.

Everything was falling in place, and it was time for him to finish this! Scrabbling his paws against the clay, he scrambled back onto his feet. He pounded his fist into his palm and rushed toward the groaning Mienfoo on the ground.

"N – no...!"

Feyley slammed her fists into the ground, the tattered remains of her cloth whips fluttering around her wrists. A little bit of aura still remained in her palm. It wasn't much, but it was enough! She quashed down the searing pain that was building up in her arm and swung it at the charging Riolu.

_Whoosh._

Her fist fell just short of his muzzle. Her eyes widening, Feyley tried again – swinging her left fist at him.

_Whoosh._

Blue, looking a little surprised, simply leaned his upper body back and let her fist cut through the air instead. With a furious snarl, Feyley threw one more punch at him.

_Thud._

"I get it now..." Blue said, holding her fist in his palm. "So that's why you were wearing those scarves! Your arms are a lot shorter than mine, so you needed a way to extend your reach!" He tossed her paw aside, and quickly caught another one coming his way.

"What are you talking about?!" the Mienfoo snarled as she wrenched her paw out of his grasp. She ducked low and tried to uppercut his chin, but Blue just held his paws underneath his face and caught it.

"Not to mention..." Blue picked up Feyley's paw. Looking curious, he uncurled her fingers and squeezed them. "Your punches are pretty soft, Feyley."

"S – shut up!" Feyley's face turned an awful shade of puce as she hurled her fist right into his curious face. "Don't talk as though you understand everything, Riolu!"

Blue turned his body to the side, letting Feyley be carried past him by the momentum of her strike. As she was recovering from her missed strike, he prodded her in the back with his finger. A cold shiver traveled down her spine, making the Mienfoo twitch and fall onto the floor with a squeak. She grit her teeth and slammed her fists into the clay, growling and snarling as she fought with her embarrassment and frustration.

"Come to think of it, you didn't throw any punches then as well," Blue remarked as he gave the furious Mienfoo a wide berth. "you were a lot more fond of launching flying kicks instead of using your fists." He rubbed his chest as he recalled the pain he had suffered from taking one of her kicks head on then.

"...what did you just say?"

Blue circled his chest with his finger as he placed a paw behind his head, "I remember when you struck me right in the chest with your heel. That seriously hurt! Hahahaha... ha... ha..."

Ice. It felt as though he had just been thrown into a lake filled with ice. Shuddering, he turned and saw the expression on Feyley's face. In an instant, he felt like screaming.

How could he make such a devastating mistake?!

"You... you..."

Blue took a step back out of nervousness. The small, fading flame on her paw had reignited in an incredible fashion. Instead of just covering her paw, it had expanded to encompass her entire body. Her arms, shoulders, and even her head were covered in a brilliant, azure flame. Her fury had transformed her into a veritable bonfire!

"So... you remembered our first duel after all..."

She stumbled toward Blue like a zombie, her head bent down and her arms swaying from side to side. Tiny embers of flame slid off her body, touching and extinguishing themselves on the floor. For a fraction of a second, a smirk crossed her features.

"You... you _liaaaaaar!"_

A wave of pure energy billowed forth from the furious girl, slamming into Blue like a tidal wave of fire. The force from her howl threw Blue off his balance, knocking him off his feet and down to the ground. Feyley then clamped her paws together, holding them both before her in the shape of a blooming flower. The fire that surrounded her body began to travel down her arms, congregating in the middle of both her palms in the form of a sphere.

"Feyley, stop!" Hariyama shouted in a panic. But his disciple was no longer capable of hearing anything other than her own growls. The glowing orb in her palms grew larger and larger as she poured what was left of her energy into it. The brightness of Feyley's aura was intensifying at an incredible rate, forcing everyone in the room to cover their eyes with their hands and paws. The sound of roaring wind began to fill the air, growing ever louder as her sphere increased in diameter.

"W – what's going on?!" Blue hollered at Hariyama as he clamped his paws over his eyes. "What is she doing?!"

"She's losing control over her aura!" Hariyama replied. He pointed at the glowing sphere and said, "That orb she's holding is proof of that! It is nothing more than her anger made manifest!"

"Bwahahah!"

Machoke's laughter rang out through the training room. He stood up on the bench, his hands at his hips as he guffawed over the noise of Feyley's chaotic show. Fée, Brin, Kirlia and Gothorita all gaped up at him, startled and confused by his odd reaction to the terrible event unfolding before them.

"Guildmaster, you must put a stop to this!" Hariyama appealed. "If this goes on any longer, both of them will be in danger!"

"Oh, don't get your skirt all wrinkled up over this, Hariyama!" Machoke said, waving his hand at his subordinate. "I'm sure everything will be fine. The Princess is just having a bit of a temper tantrum, that's all."

"Guildmaster!"

"_Riiiooolluuu!" _Feyley howled as she infused another pulse of aura into her sphere, expanding its size even further.

Grimacing, Blue pulled himself back onto his feet and stood his ground against the radiant ball of energy. His instincts screamed at him to run, to dodge that attack coming his way. But as he stared into the orb, something sparked at the back of his mind. That strange orb... that glow... it all seemed familiar to him... but where had he seen such a light before?

As he tried to think about it, a sudden jolt of pain shot through his skull. He dropped his guard and clutched the sides of his head. Of all times for his blasted headache to return, why now?! He struggled to bring his arms up to a defensive position again, but every move he made just caused him to wince and return to gripping his throbbing head.

"This really isn't the time to be blacking out...!" Blue snarled to himself.

"_Gyaaaaah__!_" With a frightening scream, Feyley drew back both of her arms and thrust them into the sphere. The orb was sent flying, rocketing toward Blue like a cannonball.

"Hup! Dynamic!" Machoke leapt high into the air, swinging off one of the wooden beams on the ceiling and landing in the middle of the arena. With one hand, he grabbed onto Blue's collar and with the other– "Bwaha!"

_Boom!_

"Your energy is great, Feyley!" Machoke chortled as he raised up his right arm. A gasp rose from the audience when they saw that his hand was now glowing a bright blue. The ball of aura warped and undulated within Machoke's tight grasp, burning his palm as he gripped it like a toy. "But you need to learn how to better control it! As it is right now, this thing is nothing more than a handball to me! Bwahaha!"

"Machoke?!" Blue gasped.

"And you, Blue! What kind of idiot just stands there when an attack is coming your way?" Grinning, he hurled the Riolu high into the air, throwing him toward the ceiling. Then, while Blue was busy screaming above him, he crushed Feyley's concentrated aura into nothing more than a few wisps of flame with his fingers.

"Waagh!"

Machoke chuckled as he reached out with his arm, catching Blue by the leg as he fell back down to the floor. Then, before the Riolu could even make heads or tails as to what the Guildmaster was doing, Machoke spun him around and wrapped his arms around his waist in a powerful – and very uncomfortable – grapple.

"Behold! Guildmaster Machoke's Legendary! Dynamic! Suuuuuper Seeeeismic Suuuuplex!"

"Super Seismic wha–?!"

All of a sudden, the world turned upside down for Blue. Machoke threw himself backward, arching his back like a bridge while swinging the hapless Riolu toward the floor – head first.

For a moment, Blue felt as though his entire body had become weightless. Time seemed to slow as he saw the glittering jewels embedded in the ceiling above. They resembled the beautiful, twinkling stars of the night sky. A wondrous, mysterious panorama of beauty. Blue reached up with his arms, wanting to touch, to grab one of the many pretty stars and hold it close to his ches–.

_Thud!_

Blue blacked out on the spot.

"Take a nap for a bit, Blue."

"W... what... Guildmaster...?" Feyley panted, holding on her knees for support. Her reserves of energy were spent. It took up to the very last drop of strength she had left just to stand and stay conscious.

Relinquishing his hold on the unconscious Riolu, the Guildmaster straightened himself back out and grinned. The Guildmaster turned around, beaming at the exhausted Mienfoo. He took his hand and curled his fingers together in an O shape.

"You did well, Feyley," Machoke said as he held his hand against her forehead. "at least until you lost your temper. When that happened, you lost. Both your temper and your chances of winning in a cool, _dynamic_ way!"

"C – cool...?" Feyley gasped.

Machoke nodded, "That's right. No matter what kind of situation you find yourself in, you must keep your head nice and cool! Otherwise you'll end up making dumb, uncool decisions like spending all your remaining strength on a big, wasteful attack like that!"

"Wasteful..."

"I'm sure Hariyama can lecture you better about this later, but for now..."

He released his finger and flicked her in the forehead. The light shock blew away what remaining scraps of energy Feyley had left, knocking her unconscious. Machoke caught the exhausted girl as she fell, and waved his arm at Hariyama and everyone else.

"Kirlia, Gothorita. Go call the Audino. These two aren't too badly hurt, but it's better to give them a look over anyway," he commanded.

"Yes, Guildmaster Machoke!" Kirlia and Gothorita saluted together. Both girls rushed toward the exit of the training room, with Kirlia shooting the unconscious Blue one last, worried glance before the two of them disappeared into the dark corridor.

* * *

"What a mess..." Hariyama sighed as he held his disciple in his arms. He glanced down at the tattered scraps of cloth hanging off her wrists. "Well, I suppose I'll have to make another order at Meowstic's tomorrow."

"Bwahaha! Any kind of spending is only a drop in the bucket if it's for our darling apprentices, Hariyama!"

"I agree," Hariyama murmured as he looked over Feyley's paws. Her fur was singed, and her skin showed signs of minor burns. Bite marks littered the surface of her forearm, along with a growing bruise from where Blue had managed to strike her.

As Hariyama removed the torn cloths from her wrists, he noticed something unexpected about his disciple. Despite the anger and fury she displayed in the battle mere minutes ago, the young Mienfoo wore a complacent, almost pleased – looking smile on her face.

"Blue! Blue, wake up!"

"B... Blue...!"

Machoke and Hariyama both turned to look at the other fallen warrior in the arena. The Riolu's friends, the Eevee and the Braixen were crowding around his unconscious form, trying to rouse him from his suplex – induced slumber. Hariyama sighed as he placed a hand on his Guildmaster's shoulder.

"Did you really have to knock him out that way, Guildmaster?" Hariyama asked as he watched the Eevee shake the Riolu's body. "Surely there had to be a gentler way..."

"Hariyama, don't you find it strange?" Machoke cut him off, folding his arms in front of his chest.

Hariyama turned to Machoke and asked, "Strange? What's strange?"

"I might not know much about the local gossip around town, but aren't Riolu supposed to be adept at handling the power of aura?" Machoke muttered, rubbing his chin with an uncommon, pensive expression on his face. "The way Blue reacted to Feyley's aura attacks, or rather, the way he didn't react... it seemed to me that he had no clue as to what he was throwing himself against."

"A Riolu..." Hariyama murmured back. "despite the low view many have of his kind, it's quite well known that Riolu are far more in tune with their inner strength than any other Pokémon here in our world. You have a point, Guildmaster. It _is_ odd that Blue couldn't find a way to counter Feyley's inexperienced aura."

"Hm... maybe he does know a thing or two about it, Hariyama."

"What makes you say that?"

Machoke rubbed his nose with his finger and pointed it at Feyley, "When she was getting out of hand with that big ball of aura in the end, Blue didn't move at all. That kid just stared it down, as if he were mesmerized by it or something."

"...I noticed that as well," Hariyama nodded. "isn't that why you jumped in at the end?"

"Well, I couldn't just let him take a hit right in the schnozz like that, now could I?" The Guildmaster stared down at his burnt palm and grinned. "That Blue's a strong one. Not many Pokémon could just stand there with his guard up instead of jumping away. He's nowhere as strong as I am though! If he took that blast of aura head on, he would've been out for a week! Bwahaha!"

"And yet, you still knocked him out with a suplex."

"Better me than her," Machoke smirked. "trust me on this, Hariyama. It'll be better if I take the fall here for these two."

"If you say so, Guildmaster." Hariyama bowed and looked back at the unconscious Blue and his friends. "So then, what do we do about him and his friends?"

Machoke let out a snort and placed his hands behind his head, "Get them to the infirmary, Hariyama. Blue's friends can come with him too, it'll be better that way." He poked his subordinate in the gut and jabbed a thumb at the corridor behind him, "As for me, I'll be in my chambers writing up that letter for the Dugtrio, as well as jotting down whatever I can remember from that boring meeting."

"As you wish, Guildmaster."


	31. Grandpa!

**•   
Chapter 29  
**

**"Grandpa!"**

* * *

_**Wrooooaaar!**_

A thunderous roar echoed throughout the night air, splitting the dense carpet of storm clouds hovering far above into tiny wisps and stray bolts of electricity. Dirt, wet slush and clumps of grass tumbled away from the sheer force emitted by the roar; littering the flat field with blotches of brown and green in a circular, crater shape.

A black claw the size of a boulder slammed into the ground, digging into the topsoil with a trio of fierce, black talons. A thin line of red traveled down his chest, gleaming in the dim light cast by the thunderclouds above as it stained the dirt below with a stark shade of scarlet.

Standing at the center of this crater of dirt and upturned grass was a massive dragon. Covered from head to toe in huge, pitch – black scales, the dragon had the appearance of a great monolith hewn from solid onyx. Two great wings protruded out of the dragon's back, hosting the same, dark color as the rest of his body.

However, despite his intimidating silhouette, the dragon was kneeling in the dirt, and his face was a mask of agony. There were innumerable cuts and gashes scattered all over his chest, torso and limbs. Growling, he clamped his claw over his chest to stem the flow, but it wasn't enough. All he managed to accomplish was stain his palm the same color as his wounds.

"G – grraaagh..." A pitiful growl escaped the dragon's throat. He tried to dislodge his claw from the ground, but no matter how hard he tugged, his arm refused to budge even a single inch. It wasn't just his arm, however. His entire body felt torpid and unresponsive. His once – proud wings were now lying flat on his back, unresponsive. He could not muster even a sliver of strength to raise his arms up. Worst of all, his massive tail was now lying in the dirt, half buried under a layer of disgusting mud.

His consciousness flitted in and out of his mind, making his vision flicker like a thunderstorm. He forced another jolt of energy through his body in an attempt to do something, anything to move a part of his body. His arms, his legs... even his wings...! But, to his utter frustration, nothing worked. He was nothing more than a statue, still and immobile.

"M – master Zekrom!"

Panic crossed the dragon's face as he turned toward the direction of the voice. Hiding behind a pile of upturned soil a few paces away was a small Pokémon, covered in a thick, fluffy coat of cream – colored wool. An Oran Berry dangled from her lips as she struggled back to her feet.

"S – stay away!" The dragon – Zekrom – roared at the little Pokémon, baring his fangs at her in an attempt to threaten her away. "Stay away, you stupid Mareep!"

But the Mareep wasn't deterred. A fierce shade of red arose within her cheeks as she furrowed her brow out of determination. Her white teeth flashed as she bit down tight on the berry's stem.

"Master Zekrom, please wait! I'm coming right now!" She shouted.

_Splash! _

The Mareep didn't even get the chance to take a single step forward. A sharp, green flash erupted before her face, blinding her and and sending several large chunks of dirt splattering against her face. Icy cold mud stained her creamy wool as she tried to withstand the wet assault.

"Eeek!"

A solid chunk of soil struck her in the forehead, sending a sharp pain coursing through her nerves. She tried to keep her legs steady, but it was futile. Her jaw went slack, letting the Oran Berry slip through her teeth and splatter into the mud. The Mareep sent her master one last pitiful look before her legs gave out.

"Den!" Zekrom howled out of despair and horror as he watched his little friend hit the mud. He strained against the leaden feeling in his arms, trying to force his claws out of the ground to reach for her. The little Mareep was lying on her side, shivering and trembling as she lay in a puddle of cold water and mud. Anger flared up inside of the dragon as he saw her in such a sorry state. He reared back his head and tried to unleash a furious roar.

_**Wrooaa... **__grerk!_

A wave of burning liquid raced up his gullet, forcing him to clamp his jaws shut. His roar became jammed inside his throat, draining what little strength he had left and throwing his head back down. He choked down the foul fluid in his mouth and coughed into the dirt, looking pathetic for such a large dragon.

"...You could've avoided this if you had just cooperated, Dragon of Ideals..."

Zekrom's head snapped upward at the insolent voice. Standing beside his fallen friend was an unrecognizable figure. With a thick, ragged green cloak wrapped around his head and body, Zekrom couldn't tell who, or even_ what_, the stranger was.

"You…!" Zekrom snarled at the figure, baring his sharp fangs in an effort to look threatening.

A lithe, green claw extended out from within his cloak. He picked up the fallen Oran Berry from the dirt and wiped it against his cloak. While the stranger was nowhere as tall or massive as Zekrom, he stood tall and proud in the presence of the dragon – almost as if he was mocking Zekrom's current, pitiful state.

"Haban Berry," the stranger muttered as he held up the tiny, blue – colored berry up to his shadowed face. "while it holds no detrimental effects to most Pokémon when ingested, the same can't be said for dragons like you."

"Rrgh..." Zekrom growled.

The cloaked figure presented the Oran Berry to the dragon, "When devoured by a dragon, the juice of the Haban Berry will produce a steady stream of paralyzing toxin upon contact with their saliva. In theory, you shouldn't even be able to move anything more than your nostrils. The way you can still struggle and talk... such is the power of a legend, I suppose."

He shot a glance over to the Mareep and added, "This toxin, while effective, only lasts for a few hours. Yet – you cannot expect something as small as an Oran Berry to instantly cure it, Mareep." The hood over his head fluttered as he nodded his head, "You have my respect for trying, though."

"Furthermore, I also added a Wacan Berry in that dinner broth of yours." The cloaked figure pointed to the dragon's half – buried tail. "No matter how hard you force it, you cannot generate any power within that body of yours until that berry's effects have run its course."

Zekrom cursed to himself as he struggled to lift his tail from the dirt. If only he had paid more attention to what he was eating earlier, he would've realized that his blasted dinner had been tampered with!

"You... do you even know what you're doing...?"

The cloaked figure tossed the Oran Berry over to Zekrom, letting it land on the ground before replying, "I know far more than you do, Dragon of Ideals."

"Then... then why?!" Zekrom's eyes bulged as he forced a roar at the insolent stranger, groaning from pain. The dragon forced a grimace onto his face as he sent a glare back at the cloaked figure, "If you... if you do know the consequences... then why would you steal the Stone Gear?!"

"Why?"

The cloaked figure sighed and reached inside his cloak with his claw. From within the ragged folds, he pulled out a dull block of gray stone. While it looked like it was hewn from a plain rock, the odd stone was smooth and polished on the surface – almost as if it were a piece of glass.

To a casual observer, it would amount to nothing more than a simple rock. Yet, upon further inspection, it was a true piece of art. A series of ornate markings adorned the surface of the rock. Long, blocky designs protruded out from a small perfect circle in the center; while thin, wispy swirls decorated the outer edges.

"Dragon of Ideals," the figure traced his claw over the surface of the stone, following the markings with his talon. He held it below Zekrom's face, letting the shiny surface reflect the dragon's pitiful expression, "this stone is far more than just a precious treasure. This stone, and its eleven brethren, hold the key to–"

Before he could finish his sentence, Zekrom's wings flared out from his back. Blue electricity began to crackle all over his body, bouncing off his scales and scattering light all over the rain - soaked field. His pained expression sharpened into a threatening glare as he yanked his claws out of the mud. The cloaked figure, startled by this sudden movement, stuffed the stone back inside his cloak. He leapt back and away, just as Zekrom unleashed a powerful roar.

_**Wroooooar!**_

"Kuh...!" The cloaked figure swore as he landed in the mud. He adjusted his hood with his claws, keeping it steady as he stared down his resurrected opponent. "...The effects of the berries shouldn't have worn off this quickly... What happened?"

As he glanced around him, a sudden arc of electricity flew across his face – drawing his attention to the source. The little Mareep had raised her jewel – tipped tail and was transmitting all that she had left of her electricity to the dragon during their conversation. He hissed out of anger, frustrated that he hadn't noticed it earlier.

Zekrom slashed down into the dirt and scooped up a huge handful of the mud. With no hesitation at all, he slapped the wet soil over the wounds on his chest and arms. Then, he picked up the fallen Oran Berry and threw it down his throat. As the cloaked figure said, such a weak, small berry wasn't enough to fully resuscitate him. But, to the weakened Dragon of Ideals, just about anything would help.

"Your underhanded tricks won't work now, blasted thief!" Zekrom snarled as he faced the cloaked figure. He extended his arms out to his side, brandishing his claws, "Return the stone this instant, and I _may_ consider letting you leave my domain alive!"

"Feh..." The cloaked figure wasn't fazed by the threat. Instead, he crouched low and clung to his cloak with his right claw. He reached out with his left arm, revealing a set of three leafy blades extending from his wrists.

With a quiet hiss, the cloaked figure crouched low to the ground and directed his blades right at the dragon's face. In response, Zekrom reared up into the cloud – covered sky and unleashed a harrowing roar. A bright yellow thunderbolt came careening down from the heavens, striking Zekrom's tail and enveloping him with an iridescent glow.

"It'd be a shame to defeat a famous legend through trickery, I suppose..." The leaves on the cloaked figure's wrist began to take on a bright, green glow as he pointed it at the powered up Zekrom. "Well then, Dragon of Ideals. Let's see if you're as strong as I've read..."

He reached back and leapt toward the dragon, his mouth wide open as he snarled out a battle cry. Zekrom swung his claw right as the cloaked figure reached him, his fangs bared and his scales crackling with electrical energy.

_"Haaaah!"_

_**Wrooooaaar!**_

* * *

Blue woke.

He was lying on his back, with his head resting against something soft and comfortable. However, the chaos going on inside his skull was anything but. A painful, frustrating headache rampaged around inside his head as he lay on his back, causing him to wince and moan as he began to regain his senses.

"What was that...?" He murmured to himself as struggled to sit up straight.

The sounds of screaming, of roaring and thunder crashing all echoed around inside his skull. The faces of Pokémon and scenes of places he couldn't recognize flashed about inside his mind, coming and going like transient fireworks. Blue closed his eyes to try and gather his thoughts together.

"Agh!"

A jolt of pain crackled inside his skull, forcing him to clasp his paws onto the sides of his head. He could feel his veins thumping against his palms as he massaged his aching temples. Every single pulse he felt came with it a sharp shock through his nerves, sending his fur prickling up on his back like pine needles.

He opened his mouth and took a deep breath, letting cool air into his lungs to calm him down. It worked; the pain in his head was subsiding, albeit only a little. However, the damage had been done. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't replay what he saw. Everything he could remember was now left in fleeting shards of thought, refusing to come together again..

_A flash of green… a big, black dragon…_ _Just what was all of that about?_

He tried to dig deeper into his memories to see if he could unearth more pieces and scenes from his aching head. Another jolt of pain struck him, forcing his thoughts to scatter and wasting his effort in the process.

Sighing, Blue shook his head and opened his eyes again. There was no reason to try and force it if his own head wasn't going to play nice with him. Drowsiness still blurred his vision, so he could see nothing around and ahead of him but cold blackness.

"Fée?" Blue called out, hoping for his partner to respond back to him from the darkness. "Fée, are you there?"

"I don't believe I ever said you could call me by that name, Riolu."

Feyley's face appeared to loom out of the darkness, appearing over his chest all of a sudden. Startled that it was a Mienfoo that replied instead of his Eevee friend, Blue let out a loud yelp and scrambled backward, holding his paws over his collar in an attempt to protect himself from her. Unfortunately, there was no way for him to escape unscathed...

_Wham!_

_ ..._as there was a solid stone wall behind him.

"Guagh!" Tears of pain welled up in his eyes as he doubled over, clutching the growing lump on the back of his head. "Ow, ow, ow!"

Feyley sighed and backed away from the groaning Riolu. She sat at the other end of his cot, watching her erstwhile opponent groan and writhe in agony before her.

"Is there any reason to be this surprised?" Feyley asked, frowning. "It's just me, Riolu."

"U – ugh..." Blue quashed down the pain with another huge gulp of air and shook his head. He opened one eye and sent a glare back at Feyley, stating, "Anyone would be surprised if you appeared from out of nowhere like that!"

"From out of nowhere?" Feyley paused to glance around for a moment. "If I were to wake you up, Riolu, then where would I be?"

"Where...?" Blue was a little confused by what she said. He closed his eyes again and rubbed his face, trying to purge the remaining drowsiness from his system before continuing. When he opened his eyes again, he could see a little better. Or at least, a little farther than the length of his arms.

The first thing he noticed was that he was no longer in the training hall. Instead, he appeared to have been placed in a far smaller room in comparison. There were no lights either, as the walls were devoid of the glowing gems that illuminated the rest of the guild. Instead, the only light source in the entire room came from a latticed hole bored in one of the walls. Bright moonlight shone through this hole, casting the room with a checkerboard array of light.

Upon taking a quick survey of his dark, claustrophobic surroundings, he immediately understood what Feyley meant by 'where would I be?' There was no space at all for a Pokémon to stand in this room. It appeared as though every single inch of the floor space had been taken up by furniture. Whether it be squat cabinets, tall shelves or short tables – Blue couldn't turn his head without seeing one of those. Looking down, he noticed that he appeared to be lying on one of the short tables as well.

However, this table was different. Instead of having a hard, wooden surface, soft, cushy material covered the top. It reminded him of the poufs that he sat on back at Mismagius' house in the Forlorn Forest, just larger and rectangular instead of circular.

"That still doesn't explain why you were right next to me when I woke up!" Blue grumbled, rubbing his head. He jabbed a finger at a nearby cloth – covered table and frowned, "You could've sat on one of those instead of invading mine!"

Feyley folded her arms and retorted, "I _was_ using that cot, Riolu. However, I was awakened by the sound of you tossing and turning in your own. I got worried and crossed over to see if you were alright."

"I was... what?"

"Tossing, turning... moaning, and groaning." Feyley said. "You were being incredibly loud as well. Loud enough that you forced me out of my own slumber, you know." She narrowed her eyes and added, "Just what were you dreaming about?"

"I... I don't remember." Blue muttered, lamely.

"Do you really not remember," Feyley remarked, smirking. "or are you lying again?"

Blue coughed into his paw and looked away. Even if he had wanted to tell Feyley what his dream was, he couldn't. His recollection of what he'd dreamt of felt like a wild whirlwind of scenes and sounds, with little to no coherence between them. And if he did try to piece everything back together, a jolt of pain would just cause it all to fall apart again.

A moment of silence passed by while Blue mulled over his choices, and Feyley stared at him. After a minute of waiting, she let out a loud, impatient sigh and shook her head at the troubled Riolu.

"Feh, forget it." Feyley said. "It's not like I was that interested anyway. For all I know, you might've just been dreaming of Kirlia or some such. How revolting." After leaving behind her cheeky remark, the Mienfoo slid off the side of Blue's cot and hopped back onto her own.

"Dreaming of... hey!" Blue shook his paw at Feyley and scowled. "I wasn't dreaming of her! I'm sure of at least that much!"

"Oho, I believe you. I believe you indeed."

"Rrgh..." Irritated, he flashed his fangs at the smirking Mienfoo, but Feyley just snickered and laid back down on her bed.

Now alone on his own cot, Blue took the chance to glance down and survey his body. He kicked his legs up into the air, and rubbed his chest with his paw. Aside from a few scuffs on his fur, and a faint imprint on his chest in the shape of a Mienfoo's paw, he was uninjured for the most part.

Blue let out a deep sigh of relief. For once, he'd managed to get out of a battle without covering himself in injuries! He chuckled and laid back down on his cot, feeling refreshed and rather gleeful at his well being. No need to go and trouble Fée or Brin with his wounds, he cheered to himself. As his head touched the surface of the cot though, a thought came to him.

"Fée? Brin?" Blue raised his body back up and glanced around the dark room again, this time with the intent of finding his friends. He had hoped that he would hear the sound of his companion this time.

To his dismay, all that came from it was the same result as before.

"Would you stop calling me that?" Feyley's sharp voice drew his gaze over to her cot. She flicked her muzzle at him and scowled, "Fey... Fey... I've already granted you enough respect by letting you call me by my name, Feyley. But I draw the line at calling me Fey!"

"I'm not calling you!" Blue snapped back. "My friend's name is Fée! And I'm trying to see if she's around!"

"Your friend? You mean that little Eevee that was bawling over your unconscious body while we were being treated?"

"Treated?" Blue patted his arms and legs as he looked to Feyley for an explanation.

"Miss Audino took care of whatever wounds we had while you were unconscious," Feyley stated, dismissing his question with a wave of her paw. "your two... _friends_... were rampaging around, desperate to try and wake you up. Miss Audino shooed them out for being a nuisance. I suppose the two of them are probably sitting out there somewhere, wailing and bawling some more."

"I see..." The image of Fée and Brin crying over his body came into his head, bringing with it a sick feeling in his gut. Sighing, Blue made a mental note to apologize to his friends later for worrying them.

"Not that there was much for Miss Audino to heal, mind you." Feyley grumbled, snapping Blue out of his thoughts. "Our battle was an utter travesty, Riolu."

"Oh yeah, our battle!" Blue snapped his gaze back to Feyley and pointed a paw at her "What happened afterward? I remember you getting really mad at me, and then everything else was just sort of a crazy blur."

Startled, Feyley looked away and rubbed the back of her right paw, "Guildmaster Machoke intervened in the end, you ought to recall that."

A twinge of pain ran through Blue's skull as he recalled that unsavory moment. He had his poor, aching collar yanked again by that musclebound Guildmaster, and then hurled high into the air without warning. And to cap it all off, Machoke finished his horrifying show by grabbing him while in the middle of falling, and slamming his noggin straight into the clay floor.

"So I got knocked out by Machoke..." Blue groaned and held both of his paws on his head, patting the small bump atop his skull.

"Yes... you did." Feyley turned her head over to sneak a glance at him.

"Ugh... just how many times did I get hit on the head today? I don't remember..." The Riolu shot a look over to Feyley, who looked startled at his sudden attention and turned her head away in response.

"Come to think of it," Blue tapped his chin as he pondered something, unaware of her discomfort. "there's something I wanted to ask you about our match, Feyley."

"Something?" Feyley echoed, still avoiding eye contact with him. "What would that _something_ be?"

"Well... it's more why than what, I guess." Blue said, scratching his nose. "I wanna know why you were so fixated on fighting me again."

"Why I was so fixated...?" Her voice was no louder than a mumble, leaving Blue no choice but to lean his head in closer just to hear. The Mienfoo brought her paw up to her mouth and nibbled on her digits, thinking of how to best respond, "I... it's a little complicated..."

Blue drew back and rubbed his chin, "Complicated?" He smiled and shook his head, "I thought it was just something like you wanted to take revenge for your loss in our first battle!"

Feyley sat up on her cot and shot Blue a disparaging glare, "I – I am not so petty as to demand a rematch just for my pride alone! There were more reasons for me to want another duel with you than to soothe my ego!"

"Well if it isn't to take revenge on me, then tell me!" Blue shot back. "What were your reasons, then?"

"It's... not..." Feyley bit down on her paw and grimaced, trying to force her words out of her mouth. "I... I just wanted... it's not... _aagh_!"

Feyley swung her muzzle up into the air and let out a frustrated snarl. She began to unleash a savage beating unto her cot, slamming her fists deep into the mattress over and over again until she left a lasting indent in the surface.

This display of abject rage forced Blue to shift away and press his back up against the wall even further. Distancing himself from the irritated Mienfoo seemed like a prudent plan. After all, there was no telling when she might change her target from her unfortunate bed over to the unfortunate Riolu who set this off in the first place.

"H – hey, calm down, alright?" Blue, worried both for Feyley and for his own well-being, raised a paw and tried to mitigate her anger. "If it's really that difficult a question, then you don't have to tell m– agh!"

_Whap!_

Blue almost fell off the bed as a soft pillow soared into his face. Confused, he pulled the pillow away and gaped back at his assailant.

"I... I never said I wasn't going to tell you...!" Feyley planted a paw on her heaving chest. "J- just... give me a moment, okay? I need to compose my thoughts!"

Her face glowed bright red in the moonlight as she tried to calm herself down. She inhaled and exhaled several lungfuls of air before turning to face Blue with a fresh, although still glowing, face.

"Listen up... I'll only tell you once!" Feyley snapped at him, wringing her paws. "You... you know that I hail from Mount Travail, do you not?"

"I think you mentioned it while we were all walking down that corridor earlier," Blue commented. "you said something about eating a lot of biscuits and sleeping earl – gggh!"

_Whap!_

Another pillow flew into his face.

"Why is it that you can only remember embarrassing things about me?!" Feyley snarled as she clutched her last pillow in her paw, aiming it at the insolent Riolu's face. "Is it that much to ask for you to focus on something more flattering about me for once?"

"It's hard to remember anything about you when you keep hitting my memories out of my head, you know!" Blue tossed her pillow back to her and folded his arms.

Feyley caught her pillow and stuffed it underneath herself before pointing a paw back at Blue. "For all the strength you must possess, why must you always act like such a fool? If... if you were a member of my tribe on Travail, you'd never be allowed to act in such a frivolous manner!"

"A member of your tribe?" Blue cocked his head to the side and furrowed his brow. "What do you mean by that? I'm not a Mienfoo, and I'm pretty sure haven't I visited your mountain before."

"Er..." Feyley held her paws over her mouth and looked away, her face growing red hot again. "It's... that's not what I meant..!"

"Then what is it?" Blue felt a little frustration growing inside of him as he continued to try and reason with the Mienfoo. He shook his head and sighed as he rubbed his throbbing head, "Really, I just don't understand what you're talking about, Feyley."

"It's..." Still feeling awkward, Feyley glanced toward the latticed window, nibbling on her paw as if it were some delicious morsel. She turned her gaze back to Blue, staring into his impatient expression out of the corner of her eyes as she tried to gather her thoughts. After a few silent seconds had passed, Feyley turned around to face Blue in full.

"You... you're a Riolu, right?" She asked. "A real Riolu?"

"I don't understand what you mean by a 'real Riolu,'" Blue remarked, his tone wry. "but like I said to you hours before, I'm pretty sure I'm a Riolu. The only Riolu in this town, no less. At least, from what I've heard."

"I see..." Feyley murmured as she continued to gnaw at her paw.

"Is there a point to asking me that same question again?"

"I... I just needed to know for sure," Feyley replied. A look of hesitation flashed across her face. Her mouth opened and closed as she tried to think up the right words to use. After a few minutes of struggling had passed, Feyley swallowed the lump in her throat and took a deep breath.

"Y - you see…" Feyley's voice sounded strained, as if she was trying to choke out her words. "Back at my home, Mount Travail, there was an interesting story that my mother often told me when I was a young girl. It was... a story of her own youth; a story about a Riolu she once met."

"A story about a Riolu?!" Blue's curiosity was piqued. He leaned ahead and stared at Feyley, making her blush at his sudden attention.

"That's correct. If I remember how the story goes… Long before I was born, my mother was traversing the heights of Mount Travail by herself for a training excursion, as she often did. However, on one particular day, something startling happened."

"Startling? What was it?"

Feyley turned her head and stared at Blue's face, "What my mother found on her excursion that day…" She held up a paw and pointed it at Blue, "...was a Riolu, like you."

Blue cocked his head to the side and frowned, "Is that a big deal? I mean… finding a Riolu walking on a mountain doesn't seem like something to be startled about."

"Don't you remember what I've told you before?" Feyley muttered. "With very few exceptions, there are only two kinds of Pokemon that reside on Mount Travail. That is, Mienfoo like me, and Mienshao like my mother."

"I think I remember you mentioning that before," Blue said. He covered up the smirk forming on his face as he snickered, "a mountain filled with nothing but Feyleys... that's kinda scary to think about. I don't think I'd ever wanna go there after hearing that!"

_Whap!_

"Ha!" Blue held up his paw and caught the pillow flying toward his face. "Saw it coming this time, Feyley!"

"Feh..." Feyley snatched her pillow out of the air as the Riolu tossed it back to her. She wrapped her paws around the fluffy thing, resting her chin on top of it as she sent an irritated glare at the grinning Riolu.

"So then?" Blue asked. "What happened after your mother met that Riolu?"

Feyley folded her arms and closed her eyes, deep in thought, "I asked her the same thing. The answer I got… it wasn't what I expected." Feyley rubbed her knuckles with her other paw, "I had thought that she would've taken out that intruder in an instant, and kicked him off the mountain afterward."

A vindictive look flashed across Feyley's face, sending a cold chill slither down Blue's spine. Thinking that it'd be best to avoid this sort of dangerous talk, he held up his paws and tried to steer the conversation in a different, safer direction.

"Is… is Mount Travail tall?"

Feyley tapped the top of her pillow with her lips and replied, "Not particularly, but that isn't the point. The point is that there was an odd visitor on our mountain that day, and not a welcome one at that."

"Why not?"

"Didn't I already tell you mere seconds ago?" Feyley grumbled, glaring over her pillow at him. "With only few exceptions, foreigners are not allowed to set foot on our lands! The only exceptions are if the visitor was clearly injured and in need of help, if the visitor is someone important from somewhere else, or was invited by one of us. Or... if the visitor becomes a mate of one of the Mienfoo or Mienshao living on the mountain."

"I see," Blue said. "and that Riolu was none of those, right?"

"That's correct," she said. "the Riolu that my mother met was scaling our mountain without permission, for no reason other but his own, personal goals."

Feyley stuck out her tongue and grimaced, "My mother told me that the Riolu wanted to see the summit. Not for training, or for anything else. But to see the sights from atop the mountain. It was a selfish Pokémon who only wanted to invade our sacred home for excitement and pleasure."

"That's a little harsh to say about someone who just wanted to see what was at the top of your mountain, Feyley."

Feyley sighed and buried half of her muzzle inside her pillow, "Evidently, my mother thought the same as you. For whatever reason, at that time she held no qualms with that Riolu wandering around our land... and not only that, my mother even suggested that _she_ assist him in scaling our mountain!"

"Really?" Blue found himself smiling at Feyley's story. "Your mother must be really nice if she offered to help him, even though he was an intruder."

"Nice?" An aghast, incredulous expression flitted onto Feyley's face. Her fangs flashed in the moonlight as she bit down on the top of her pillow, "She was anything but! Oh... years, and years of harsh torment and suffering as I languished under her watch! Languished indeed!"

"L – languished?"

Feyley jabbed a finger at Blue and snarled, "Have you ever felt the sting of hunger stab at you throughout the night? All because you failed to knock out your own mother in a spar?"

"I... I can't say I have..."

"How about the pain of a burning stomach, desperate and screaming for sustenance?! All because you couldn't succeed in fulfilling the nigh – impossible tasks set by your mother?!"

"F – Feyley, I think you should calm down..."

"My mother... nice... What a yarn!" Feyley griped under her breath as she continued to introduce her poor pillow to her fangs. "A yarn indeed! If it wasn't for the fact that my mother would never tell a lie, I would have never believed her Riolu story for a second!"

"Speaking of that Riolu story..." Not wanting to rile up Feyley even further, Blue tried to redirect the conversation toward somewhere safer again. "What happened after your mother agreed to take him to the summit?"

"I have no idea."

A cold wind blew through the latticed hole in the wall, courting the icy silence that fell over the two Pokémon. For a moment, Blue considered humoring the opportunity to throw his own pillow at Feyley for that abrupt remark, or perhaps leaping onto her cot and giving her a solid chop on the head. However, one look at the troubled expression on the Mienfoo's face had blown away his dangerous thoughts with the freezing breeze.

"I don't mean that as a joke, Riolu." Feyley grumbled. "To this day, I've never succeeded in extracting the whole story from her lips. Not without trying, mind you! Every challenge, every ambush, and every duel I initiated with the intent on getting the rest of that tale from her had ended in utter and miserable failure..."

"It's a little hard to imagine someone even tougher than you, Feyley." Blue remarked with a grin. "You're telling me that you can't defeat your own mother, even with all that skill and power you've built up?"

"Regrettably, that is so." Feyley gave her pillow one more chomp before tossing it to the side. "Believe it or not, Riolu. It is quite a difficult task to take down the very Pokémon who taught you everything you knew for all your life. Every single movement, every single technique in my repertoire was countered effortlessly..."

"Your mother taught you everything, huh?" A sudden thought flew into Blue's head, drawing out a bubbling sensation of curiosity. He pointed a paw at his chest and asked, "Does that mean she taught you how to do that strange, explodey... firey thing, too?"

"Must you find every way under the skies to demean me?" Feyley growled. She held up her paw and pointed her palm at his chest, "Calling my technique by a foolish name like that... are you asking for another demonstration?"

"H – hey!" Blue crossed his arms over his chest and scooted away. "I'm not interested in getting thrown across the room again! I only called it that because I didn't know what else to call it!"

"You truly do befuddle me, Riolu." Feyley muttered, lowering her paw. "You befuddle me indeed. While I haven't been able to hear the whole story from my mother, there were quite a few bits and pieces of it I could glean from other sources. Namely... how she learned how to control her aura from that Riolu during their sojourn."

"Aura? Is that what it's called?" Blue said, tapping his chin with his paw. A smile appeared on his face as a thought came to mind. He turned to Feyley, beaming wide, and said, "Say, do you think you can teach me how to use aura?"

"What?"

"Well," Blue thumped his chest with his paw. "you remember when I tried to copy what you did earlier, right? I was wondering why it didn't work for me, when it was doing so well for you! Is there some kind of trick to unleashing that strange attack? Can you teach me how?"

Feyley was struck dumb by what the Riolu just said. She raised her paw, then lowered it… and then raised it again. Then, after lowering it one last time, she lowered her head and muttered something under her breath. Curious as to what she was saying, Blue inched forward a bit and tried to listen in.

"You're unbelievable!"

Feyley's shout rang around inside of Blue's ears with the force of a gong. Yelping, the Riolu flinched and clamped his paws onto his ears. Taking this chance, Feyley bared her fangs and stood up on her cot. She crouched low and sprung off, sending her sheets and pillows flying away behind her.

"Gah!" Blue coughed as Feyley plowed into his gut, head first. The sheer force behind her tackle sent him sprawling on his back.

Without giving him a chance to recover, she pinned him down against the cot by planting her rear on his chest. She then wrapped her paws around his wrists, immobilizing his arms and preventing him from being able to pull her off.

"You're a Riolu, are you not?!" Feyley slammed her forehead against his as she snarled in his face. "If that is the case, then how in the _world_ do you not know about aura?! Are you hiding it from me?!"

She began to squeeze his wrist, all the while still tugging at his limb. It was as if she was trying to coax out some aura from his paw the same way one would milk a Gogoat! However, despite her best efforts, nothing came out of the hapless Riolu's arm but stray strands of fur.

"Gah!" Blue winced as Feyley gave his arm another solid tug. "You're gonna pull my arm out! Stop!"

"How could it be that you know nothing about aura?" Feyley seethed. "If what my mother told me is true, then you should be far more intimate with the concept of aura than I ever could! You must know more than I do! You _must, _indeed!"

"But I don't know a thing about this... aura, or whatever!" Blue growled back, trying his best to yank his wrist out of her paws, but to no avail. "Today was the first time I've ever heard of anything like that!"

"Today? You mean_ I_ was the one who introduced you to aura?!" she hissed. "That's preposterous! Preposterous indeed!"

"How is that preposterous? I can't know what I don't know!" Blue tried to wrest his wrist out of her grasp again, but she just tightened her grip around his arm in response. "Agh!"

Feyley didn't reply. Instead, she returned his glare with a blazing one of her own. She continued hold onto his paw, wrapping both of her arms around it like a vice. The two of them remained motionless for several seconds, staring into each others' eyes. Blue felt as though he was trapped in the middle of a ring of fire. No matter what he said, no matter what he tried to do, he was just going to get burned for his efforts.

Just what did this antagonistic Mienfoo want with him? He just couldn't wrap his head around it. Did she just want to beat him up as revenge for what he did back in the battle royale? At first, that's what he assumed. But after all of that has happened, he wasn't so sure anymore. It didn't help that his mind was still in an aching mess after that head – pounding awakening he had.

Aura, Feyley, and that story about the Riolu...

He tried to piece together all the little tidbits and clues that she had been handing him. Bit by bit, he began to form a hazy picture inside his throbbing head. The reason why Feyley was so insistent on challenging him, why she told him that story, and why she was so angry about his lack of knowledge about this aura thing...

He had a guess.

"Feyley..." Blue said, breaking the silence hanging in between the two. "the reason why you wanted to challenge me again... was it because you thought that… because I was a Riolu... I could teach you what I knew about aura?"

A look of surprise flitted across Feyley's face for a second, widening her eyes and softening her harsh glare. Although she was a little shaken by his surprising guess, she tried to hide it by putting on a scowl. She pulled his arm closer to her, pressing his palm against her chest. Blue could feel her rapid heartbeat behind her coat of tan fur.

"...If I were to deny that," Feyley muttered. "then I would be lying."

Feyley let out a deep sigh and let go of Blue's wrist, and let it drop back onto the cot. Blue rubbed his sore wrist with his other paw. As he massaged the numbness out, he kept his gaze trained on Feyley. While she still held that angry scowl, he had a feeling that she wasn't furious with him anymore.

Sighing, Blue grabbed the sides of his cot and tried to slide a bit more of his body out from under her. To his surprise, Feyley cooperated and lifted herself a bit so he could move himself easier. Despite that though, she still planted herself back down on his lower body after he was done giving himself some space. Blue sighed and shook his head. At least it was progress, he mused.

"I told you that my mother taught everything I knew, didn't I?" Feyley said, eliciting a quick nod from Blue. "It's a common tradition on Travail for parents to pass down their knowledge to their children. I was taught how to speak, how to write, how to read, and how to deal with others by my mother."

_I take back what I said about her mother being nice,_ Blue remarked to himself, smirking. _If she was the one who taught her to strangle Pokémon in order to talk with them._

"Aside from frivolities like that," Feyley continued on, unaware of his internal comment. "she was also the one who taught me how to control... and how to use my aura."

She held up her right paw and stared at her palm, "I was surprised. Until that day she decided to train me, I was the same as you are now. I'd never heard of a thing like aura before."

"So you're saying that no one on your mountain, other than your mother, told you about aura before?"

Feyley nodded, "It wasn't that nobody told me, Riolu. Nobody on Travail had even known about aura until my mother returned from her journey with that mysterious Riolu."

"Say..." Blue rubbed his cheek with his paw and hummed. "Do you know anything about that Riolu, then? Like where he came from, for example."

"No, I do not." Feyley said with a shake of her head.

"Eh? But didn't you say your mother returned with him?"

"That is true," Feyley folded her arms and sighed. "but remember what I said. All of this took place long before I had taken my first breath. By the time I was old enough to understand the world around me, there was no sign of that Riolu around the mountain anymore. The only reason I even knew about his existence was because of my mother's stories."

"I see..." Blue felt a pang of disappointment when he heard her reply. He had hoped that he could divine some information about his own past from that mysterious Riolu in Feyley's story. But, it couldn't be helped if she didn't know anything about him. He let out a despondent sigh and frowned.

"What's the matter?" Feyley asked, looking a little perturbed by his reaction.

"It's just..." Blue paused for a moment, mulling over what he should say. After a moment of thought, he shook his head and sighed. "No, it's nothing. I was just thinking of something stupid again. Don't worry."

Feyley narrowed her eyes, glaring at him out of suspicion. Feeling pressured, Blue coughed into his paw and looked away.

"Y – you said that your mother taught you how to use that explodey, firey... I mean, aura, right?" He asked, hoping to dispel the thick mood between them. "Can you show me?"

"You want me to blast you into the cot?" Feyley said, smirking. A panicked look shot across the Riolu's face as he waved his paws around in front of him.

"No!"

"Then what is it you want?"

Blue gulped and bit down on his lip, "I just want to see your aura! Is that so much to ask?"

"Hmph..." Feyley prodded Blue in the nose with her paw and smirked. "Fine. Since you seem so desperate, I suppose I can indulge your curiosity for a bit."

She opened her mouth and inhaled. Her eyes closed as she puffed out her small chest. As she released the air from her lungs, a dim blue glow began to emanate outward from her right wrist. Within seconds, her aura enveloped her entire paw, making it look like she was holding a small, blue fireball. With a small smile forming on her lips, she held it closer to Blue's face for him to get a better look at it.

"Whoa..." Blue felt awed by the little dancing flame on her palm. Now that he wasn't on the receiving end of it, he could see just how beautiful it looked. "It's pretty..."

Feyley averted her face from the Riolu, trying to hide the blush on her cheeks. "From what my mother taught me, this flame is the manifestation of the very energy that courses through our bodies. The energy that allows us to move, talk and fight."

"So that's what aura is, huh?" Blue reached up and pinched one of Feyley's glowing fingers. "Huh... I was expecting it to be hot."

"It's not a real flame, Riolu." Feyley growled as she swatted his paw away. "Normally, it would be invisible and kept within one's body. This is just how aura looks like when it is exposed to the naked eye."

"Still, I thought it would be hot," he remarked. "it looks a lot like a flame, after all."

Feyley flicked Blue's muzzle with her non – glowing paw, "Must I say it again? It is _not_ a flame. It is my aura."

"Right, right." Blue shrugged while rubbing his nose. "So... let me get this straight. Your mother met a Riolu one day, who taught her about aura, and she in turn taught you about it?"

Feyley turned her aura – covered palm toward her face and stared into it. Her smile turned wry as she shook her head, "For a certain definition of taught, I suppose. My mother was never a very cooperative teacher. While she had little issue with teaching me how to speak, write and other frivolities like that, when it came to teaching me combat... it became an entirely different situation."

"How so?"

"Unlike the other Mienshao on the mountain, my mother wasn't satisfied with just teaching me all she knew." Feyley flicked her paw and let the aura fade away. Once the blue glow was extinguished, she rested her chin on her palm and sighed. "She treated it as a game. If I wanted to learn a new technique from her, I would have to wrest it out of her by defeating her in a duel."

"You had to beat up your own mother so she would teach you?" Blue said, looking surprised. "That sounds... really rough."

"I assure you, it was only rough on me." Feyley grumbled. "To this day, I have never been able to defeat my mother in a fair fight. Not even once." She held her paws over her belly and groaned, "On top of that, with every failure came a horrid punishment. No dinner that night. Not a single bit of berry or bread. It was utter torture..."

"But you said you learned about aura somehow, right?" Blue replied. He held up his paw and gestured at his chest, "After all, how else would you have been able to use it against me like that?"

A humorless chuckle came from the Mienfoo. She dropped her paw from her chin and placed it atop Blue's chest, fitting it into the paw – shaped imprint present on his fur.

"My mother never did give me any formal training about aura," she muttered. "what I used on you was nothing more than a shallow mimicry of my mother's techniques. I've watched her use her aura on other Pokémon in combat many times in the past, and I tried my best to copy her abilities."

A grimace slid onto her face as she clenched her paw into a fist. The blue radiance of her aura returned. But, it wasn't as bright as before. Instead of looking like a burning flame, the light that covered her fist was softer; a warm glow like that of a fading lantern light.

"I... I am ashamed to say that I cannot control my aura very well," Feyley said. "I don't know if you had noticed during our battle earlier, Riolu..."

"Erm..." Blue scratched the back of his head and grinned. "I can't say I have. I was a little preoccupied keeping you from throwing me across the room."

Feyley shook her head, "You don't understand. Unlike my mother, the control I have over my aura is limited at best." She plucked Blue's paw out from behind his head and pressed it against her chest, "Had I continued to fight on, even after I had lost my temper with you, there was no doubt that you would've been the one standing in... the... end..."

Feyley's voice began to trail off, becoming quieter and quiet until she stopped talking altogether. The grip she had on Blue's wrist slackened, letting him pull his paw away from her chest. Feyley's eyes were wavering, flickering open and closed as she struggled to stay awake. The bright glow of her aura faded into nothing, with the remnants of her flame fluttering off her paw in the form of small, blue embers.

"Mrrgh…" Feyley let out a tiny moan as she rubbed her forehead with her now - darkened paw. Everything around her was spinning, making her feel unbalanced and dizzy. Her shoulders sagged, and her whiskers drooped down her cheeks. She reached out with her paws, and circled her arms around the Riolu's torso. For a moment, she wobbled in place like a spinning top. Then, as if somebody had cut the last string holding her up, she collapsed.

"H – hey!" Startled, Blue reached out and caught Feyley in his arms before she ended up slamming into him. He gripped her shoulders with his paws and gave her a light shake. She didn't react at all. Her body wobbled in his grasp like a bowl of gelatin, her head bobbing left and right like a confused Dodrio.

"Feyley, what's the matter?" Blue took one of his paws and gave the Mienfoo a gentle pat on the cheek, then backed off in case she'd retaliate against his impudent touch. However, no such retort came. Instead, all Blue could get from the Mienfoo was the light sound of her breathing.

Baffled, as well as feeling awkward, Blue tried to dislodge himself from the unconscious girl. It was no easy task, however, as Feyley had sat herself right on top of him before she zonked out. Not to mention, her arms were still wrapped around his torso, hanging on tight like a vise. In his current position, Blue had no real way of gaining the leverage needed to push her off. And even if he had, Blue was concerned that she might slip off and fall onto the hard floor below.

_That would be bad,_ Blue surmised. It was bad enough that she had somehow fallen asleep on top of him, but having her be shaken awake because of his brusqueness? Blue gulped. The consequences of that would be dire...

_Fwoosh..._

A cold breeze blew in from the latticed hole in the wall, ruffling both of their furs and chilling the air within the dark infirmary. A shudder ran through the Riolu's spine as he tried to adjust to the sudden drop in temperature. As much as he'd rather not admit it, having Feyley lying on top of him was a little comfortable. She was warm, after all. And, for such a violent Pokémon, her body was pretty soft to the touch...

_Gah, this isn't the time to be thinking of stuff like that!_ Shaking those dangerous thoughts out of his mind, Blue turned his head away from the snoozing Mienfoo and took a quick glance at the source of the wind. While the wooden crossbars made it difficult to see outside, there was no mistaking the bright shine of moonlight that was streaming in through the hole.

_It must be really late now if the moon's this bright… I wonder if Fée took Brin back home already?_ Blue frowned at the thought of being left alone by his friends. He shook his head and sighed. _Crud. If she did, then I'd probably have to stay the night here. I really don't want to walk around the town in the middle of the night again…_

Thinking back to a few days ago, Blue recalled the chilly walk he took through the town after saying his goodbyes to Xatu. Night had already set in, and the air was becoming a veritable icebox when he left the old bird's tent. Had he not run into Fée at the entrance to the guildhouse, he might've broken into a nearby building just to avoid getting his fur chilled to the roots.

_Fwoosh…_

As if to add insult to injury, another breeze swept into the room via the hole in the wall. Blue shot the window a furious glare, and then tightened his grasp around Feyley's body in order to endure the second onslaught of icy wind stabbing into him.

"What I wouldn't give to have Fée's thick fur right now…" Blue muttered as the image of his friend's thick, brown - colored coat came into mind. "I hate the cold so much…"

"Mrrgh…"

Blue's heart almost sprung out of his chest when he heard Feyley make a sound. He snapped his head back around at her, and found her still snoozing away with her cheek pressed against the fur on his chest. A sense of relief, as well as a sense of dread washed over him as he watched her use him like a hay pile.

_I'll have to figure something out. Maybe I can get someone outside to give me a hand..._

He let go of Feyley's fur and shifted his position underneath her by turning himself around so that he was now lying on his belly. With the sleeping Mienfoo now clinging to his back rather than his front, Blue arched his back and pressed down against the cot with all four paws. With a final grunt of exertion, he shunted himself off the cot and landed on the floor below.

_Thump._

"Ouch…" After giving his bruised chin a rub, Blue shook his head and stood up. To his relief, the Mienfoo on his back was still asleep, even after that rough landing he just made. After making sure that she wouldn't slip off while he walked, Blue strode toward the infirmary's exit.

* * *

"Here you are, little one. Take this compress and dab it on your friend's forehead for me, would you?"

"Mn!"

I sat nice and still on my stool as Brin held a small patch of cloth up to my face. The cloth was soaked in a deep blue salve of some kind, which had a very sweet scent wafting from it. I smiled as I let Brin touch it against the small cut on my head.

"Eek!" The compress stung when it touched my wound, making me twitch and shiver in my seat.

"Oh, stop squirming! I'm sure you can handle a little dollop of Oran Berry juice on your face! You're a big girl, aren't you? Hoh hoh!"

I winced as I turned to look at the Pokémon talking to me. Standing behind Brin was a rather plump and cheerful – looking Audino. I felt my face heat up as I watched her chortle at me. Her paws were planted on her hips, and there was a dainty shawl draped over her pink fur. Perched atop her head was a small, conical nightcap. It looked as though her raucous laughter would knock it off any second now.

Brin and I had been staying with Miss Audino in her room for the past few hours. I wanted to stay with Blue in the infirmary, but we were ushered out by Miss Audino so that he could rest in comfort. At first, I was a little disappointed that I couldn't be with my partner, but Miss Audino assured me that he would be fine by himself.

That being said, Miss Audino's office was a very interesting place to stay. She had all sorts of medical supplies strewn all over the place. Salves, splints, bandages, and – what excited me most of all – all kinds of books on Pokémon health and care! Brin and I both busied ourselves reading her collection of journals and books while we waited. At least, until Miss Audino decided to give me a quick checkup.

"Now then, I believe that is enough salve for now," Miss Audino patted Brin on the shoulder and took the patch of cloth from her hands. As she threw the cloth into a small garbage bin, she pulled a small earthen jar off the shelf and offered it to Brin. "Take one roll of bandages from this jar, if you would please!"

Brin nodded and reached inside the jar with her slender hand. She pulled out a roll of gauze from within, and began to unravel it into a long strip of white.

"Now wrap that bandage nice and tight around her head, but not too much! We want to make sure the wound has plenty of air to breathe, after all!"

"Mn!" Brin nodded as she stretched out the bandage over my wound. Then, she spun it round and round my head, making sure that not a single drop of that stinging Oran salve dripped off my fur. After a few seconds of hard work, Brin scooted around behind me and tied the bandage taut.

"How long will I have to wear this, Miss Audino?" I asked as I reached up to tap the cloth.

"Just 'Audino' will do, little one!" Miss Audino said with a smile. "Calling me 'Miss' makes me feel ever so old, you know?"

"Oh, um… sorry, Mis... I mean, Audino."

She clicked her tongue at me and poked me on the nose with her paw, "Tsk, no need to apologize! You're just like that Feyley. Ever so polite, and overly respectful!"

I blushed as I rubbed my nose. I looked up at Brin and flashed her a bashful smile. She giggled and held out another strip of cloth in her hands. She had taken off my Aura Bow earlier so that it wouldn't be stained by the Oran Berry juice. I tilted my head to the side and let her tie it back onto my right ear.

"Now, that cut on your forehead head isn't very deep," Audino said. "but it's still a little worrisome if you just leave it untreated like that. Even the smallest wounds can get infected, after all! And we wouldn't want that cute little face of yours be marred by an ugly scar, now do we?"

"Ehe…"

She reached inside her jar with her paw and took out a small glass bottle filled with a deep blue liquid, "I'm sure that you're quite a healthy young girl, so that itty – bitty cut of yours should heal up nice and quick. Perhaps it'll be gone after a good night's sleep, even! But if it doesn't, feel free to use this salve to help hasten it along, okay?"

"Wow!" I took the bottle from her paws and held it up to my eyes to get a better look at it. "Thanks, Mis… I mean thanks, Audino!"

"Why, there's no need to thank me! I'm just doing my job!" Miss Audino chortled and placed a paw on Brin's shoulder. "Your lovely friend here is who you ought to be thanking! You have such deft, delicate hands... I believe that you would make a fine doctor if you were willing to do so! Why, I'm sure loads of Pokémon would jump at the chance to be treated by someone as caring as you are!"

I looked up at Brin and saw her blushing as she fiddled around with my ribbon. The story that Mismagius told me about Brin's past came to mind. I had to wonder how Brin felt about becoming a doctor. It would mean that she'd have to meet a lot of Pokémon who wanted her to help. Would she be interested? Or would she be afraid? I couldn't quite tell by her expression.

"Brin?" I decided to just ask her straight up. "What do you think? Would you like to be a doctor?"

Brin made a little humming sound and drummed her fingers atop my head. There was a funny expression on her face. It was somewhere in between looking amused, and looking pensive. She reached down with one of her hands and plucked the tiny bottle of salve out of my paws, and swished the liquid inside around. Maybe? Maybe not? I wasn't quite sure what she was thinking...

_Thok, thok!_

Whatever questions I had were thrown out of my head by that horrendous knocking sound. A sudden weight struck the top of my head, making me yelp and duck down with my paws clamped on my scalp. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Brin fumbling around to try and catch the little bottle of salve before it hit the floor.

"My word, what a noisy knock!" Miss Audino puffed out her cheeks in irritation as she strode over to the closed door behind us. "If this is the Guildmaster, then I'll have to give him a stern talking to about making unacceptable noise during the night again!"

Wiping the tears from my eyes, I spun around on my stool and tried to see who the noisy culprit was. The doorway back out to the rest of Machoke's Guild wasn't very large, which made it very difficult to see who it was past Miss Audino's rotund frame. I gulped and clamped my paws over my mouth. That was rude!

"Hooligan!" To my relief, Miss Audino couldn't hear my thoughts. Instead, she was busy scolding whoever it was outside. "Have you any idea what time it is right now? Barring that, shouldn't you be resting in the infirmary? And why do you have her with you as well?"

"Erm... I'll explain later, but I need some help first."

I didn't need to see him to know who it was. Just hearing his voice alone was enough to bring a smile to my face. Feeling elated, I hopped off my stool and rushed over to Miss Audino's side. I poked my head around her back, and spotted him standing in the dark hallway outside.

"Blue! You're awake!" I cheered, earning myself a gasp from Miss Audino. My partner looked startled when he turned to look at me, but his surprise faded into a look of relief.

"You're still here!" He said, grinning while he patted his chest with a paw. "Thank goodness, I was thinking that you had left by now, Fée..."

I twitched my ears in indignation as I shot him a frown, "How could you possibly think that? I wouldn't just leave you here while you were still unconscious!"

He chuckled and shook his head, "I know, I know... it was stupid of me to think so." He reached forward and rubbed my head. "Sorry, Fée."

I tried to maintain my angry stare, but it was hard to do so while he was fluffing my fur. I could feel my frown melting back into a smile as I enjoyed his touch.

"Can I come inside?" Blue asked, looking over at Miss Audino. She looked hesitant to reply at first. After a moment of thought, however, she sighed and nodded her head. Blue returned her nod and mouthed a thanks as he rushed into the room. At first, I was confused as to why he seemed so hurried, but it all became clear once he was out of the dark.

"Is that... Feyley?" I tilted my head. "Why is she sleeping on your back?"

He glanced behind him for a second, then shook his head at me, "It's a long story. For now... can someone please help pull her off of me? I think she might've yanked off a good chunk of my fur by now..."

I giggled and leaned my head around to get a better look at the sleeping Mienfoo. She had wrapped her arms around Blue's chest and torso. I reached up with a paw and prodded one of hers. To my surprise, I couldn't even budge it a single inch! It was like her paws were clinging onto his fur for dear life!

"Well, it wouldn't be safe for you or Feyley if we were to pull her off here." She waved her paw at Blue and gestured to the small bed placed at the corner of the room. "Come, you can go sit on my bed."

"Thanks," Blue nodded and hurried over to the bed. He cut a strange figure as he walked. The sight of my partner struggling to move while... carrying... Feyley like that made me want to just burst out laughing. I giggled into my paw and wiped away my tears before I made my way over to his side.

"Mn..." Brin was already sitting on the bed behind Blue, and trying her hardest to disentangle Feyley's fingers from his body.

"Ow! Ow ow ow!" Blue grit his teeth as Brin yanked, tugged and pulled at Feyley's paws, but all to no avail. The Braixen growled and tried again and again, with each attempt making Blue cry out in abject pain.

"My word, she's really attached to you!" Miss Audino commented as she prodded Feyley's sleeping cheek with her paw. She stared into my partner's face with narrowed eyes, "Just what kind of roughhousing were you two getting up to in the infirmary for this to happen?"

Blue coughed into his paw and looked away, "I told you. It's a long – and exhausting – story. Please, is there some way you pull her off of me?"

Miss Audino sent him another suspicious look. But after a moment of nervous silence, she relented and leaned her mouth over to Brin's ear. I couldn't catch what she was whispering to my friend, but from the look on Brin's face, it must've been something interesting. Brin's face brightened and she held her hand up to her mouth to stifle a giggle.

"Now then! Get to helping, Brinnie!"

Brin set a serious look on her face as she nodded at the pink doctor. She held both of her hands out in front of her, stretched them out, and smirked as she began to wiggle her fingers as she inched them toward Blue's sides.

"H – hey wait a second," Blue stammered as he eyed her approaching fingers. "I thought you were going to pull her off of me?"

"Oh, don't worry your little blue head!" Miss Audino replied with a smile. "This is a neat little treatment I know to help loosen up nerves and tightened muscles! Just sit still and let your pretty friend give you a nice demonstration, alright?"

"Give _me?_"

"Mn!" Brin's teeth flashed as she launched her hands forward, digging her fingers deep inside Blue's sides.

"Gyaaah! Haaahahah! Waaagh!"

I felt my fur rise up on my back when I heard those weird sounds my partner made. It was like a strange combination of yelping, shrieking and giggling! His body wriggled and convulsed as he tried to endure Brin's tickling barrage.

"Gaaagh! Heeegh!"

"Ehe...!" I held my paws over my mouth to try and hide my amusement at his suffering, but it wasn't easy! Seeing Blue's face flush bright red like that, along the way he was wriggling around like a baby Caterpie... it was just too much!

"Hee hee hee!" I couldn't hold it in anymore. I grabbed onto my tail with my front paws and released all my laughter into it. Oh, goodness...!

The 'treatment' was working, though. The way Blue squirmed and wiggled around was loosening the grasp Feyley had on his fur. He kept stretching his torso up and up in an attempt to avoid Brin's prying fingers, giving less room for Feyley to hold onto. After a few more amusing seconds of tickling torment passed, Feyley's paws slid right off of him and she fell onto the bed behind him with a dull _thump._

"Gah!" Blue slumped low as he clutched his knees, trying to catch his breath after all of that. Brin giggled as she let go of his sides... and then dug her fingers back in for another round of tickles. "Gyeegh! Why?!"

"Now, now," Miss Audino chortled as she reached for Brin's hands, pulling them away from the whining Riolu's body. "if you tickle him any more, we'd have a pile of jelly instead of a Pokémon by the night's end!"

Brin hid her face behind her hands and giggled. She sent Blue an apologetic smile through her fingers, which he replied with a grin and a tired wave of his paw... then collapsed onto the bed in a jelly – like heap.

_Whump!_

"Oh my," Miss Audino held her paw up to her mouth and chortled. "I suppose I was too late!"

"Blue, are you alright?" I asked, peering at his red face from over the edge of the bed. He groaned and buried his muzzle into the sheets, his body still trembling and shivering.

"I'll be fine..." he said in a muffled voice. "just give me a few minutes to feel my arms and legs again..."

"Ehe..." I patted the back of his head with my paw and smiled at him. Once I was sure he was alright, I turned to look at Feyley. She curled herself up in a small ball, nestling herself in the middle of Miss Audino's sheets while sniffling in her sleep. With how cute she looked now, it's a little hard to imagine that, just a few hours ago, both Blue and her were locked in the middle of a heated battle.

"Will she be alright?" I asked.

"Oh, don't worry your little head about her, my dear!" Miss Audino tapped me on the forehead with her paw and smiled. "She's just a little tuckered out, that's all. That rough little Mienfoo will be back on her feet by tomorrow morning, I'd bet!"

"Fée?" I looked over and saw Blue staring at the bandage on my forehead. "Why do you have a bandage wrapped around your head? Did you get hurt?"

My paw went up to my forehead out of habit. Shaking my head, I smiled back at Blue's worried look and said, "No, I'm fine. Brin and Miss... I mean, Audino were just cleaning up some of the scrapes I got from Zubat. There's nothing for you to worry about, Blue."

"Scrapes..." He buried his muzzle back inside the bed again and mumbled something into the sheets. I perked up my ears and tried to hear what he was saying, but the only thing I could make out was, "...sorry..."

"Oh, don't you get all depressed over a small cut like that, boy!" Miss Audino chortled and slapped a paw on Blue's back, making him spring upright with a yelp. "I just finished telling your cute little friend that it'll all be fine! There's no need for you to be moping about a few small scratches here and there!"

"But..." Blue looked like he wanted to retort, but Miss Audino shoved a paw against his lips and shut him up.

"No buts, and no frowns!" Miss Audino said. She grabbed onto his arm and yanked him off the bed, and planted his feet onto the floor. Both Brin and I were stunned. Miss Audino was a lot stronger than she looked! Even Blue looked like he was surprised at being picked up and put down by the pink doctor.

"Now then," Miss Audino smiled as she began to look over Blue's body. She took her paw and unraveled one of her feelers hanging off of her ears, and pressed it against Blue's chest. She closed her eyes and smiled as she concentrated. "you are a tough little Pokémon, Blue. All those bumps and bruises that Feyley gave you are already healing up nice and well. It's remarkable, really."

"Remarkable?" I echoed.

Miss Audino nodded at me as she withdrew her feeler from Blue, "That's right. Not to mention, usually, my patients tend not to be walking - or conscious, for that matter - this soon after taking the full brunt of the Guildmaster's 'Five – Hour Suplex!'"

"It's called the 'Five – Hour Suplex?'" Blue said. "Why's that?"

"Why, it's because most Pokémon don't wake up until five hours after the Guildmaster uses it on them!"

Blue's paws shot up to the top of his head as he looked at me, aghast, "I was out for five hours?!"

"Oh, no, no, no!" Miss Audino shook her head and patted him on the shoulder. "I was just talking about your stalwart body, Blue! You weren't out for five, but instead, you were out for only three! How impressive!"

"Yeah... impressive..." Blue rubbed the back of his head and shot me a wry grin. I giggled and nudged him in the leg with my head.

"Now, I don't see any reason to keep you locked up here if you're already up and about and so energetic!" Miss Audino clapped her paws together and chortled. "I'm sure the three you must be angling to get out of this stuffy place as soon as possible!"

"It'd be nice to head home soon," I said. "our plans got derailed pretty badly by Feyley earlier. I never planned on staying out this late today." I gave Brin an apologetic look and said, "I'm sorry Brin, I'm sure Mismagius must be really worried about you by now."

Brin shook her head and held out her hands to me. I looked down at her palms, and saw that she was holding onto the little bottle of salve that Miss Audino gave her. At first, I was confused by what she meant by that. But, when I saw her smiling face above, I understood.

"Mn!"

"Ehe... okay, I get it." I walked over to Blue and gave his paw a light nip, before pulling him after me toward the exit. "Come on Blue. Let's take Brin back to her home. I think she has something important she wants to tell Mismagius."

"Alright," Blue pulled his paw out of my mouth and stretched his arms above his head. "you lead the way, Fée. I can barely remember how to get to Duskull's Bakery, let alone at night!"

Feeling proud, I puffed out my chest and grinned, "Well, good thing I've memorized the directions on Wigglytuff's letter! I'm sure it won't even take ten minutes to get there from Machoke's Guild."

Blue rubbed my head with his paw and grinned, "Great! Let's get moving then! Come on, Brin!"

"Mn!"

The two of them turned to me with expectant looks on their faces. Giggling, I kept my chest puffed out as I strutted between my friends and toward the doorway with a giddy look on my face. It felt great to be relied on like this, even if it was as small as leading a friend home. Then again, I'd never done anything like this before, so this was a new experience for me as well!

"Oh, please wait a moment!"

All three of us turned around at Miss Audino's behest. I tilted my head to the side and asked, "What is it, Miss Audino? Did we forget something?"

"Just Audino will do, Fée." She coughed into her paw and glanced over at the sleeping Feyley. "Erm... this might sound a little strange, but can you please humor me for a moment?"

"We don't mind, right?" I said, looking at my friends. Blue gave me a grin and shook his head, while Brin seemed to be paying rapt attention to Miss Audino.

"That's great!" Miss Audino clapped her paws together and gave us a cheery smile. "What I wish from the three of you is that... Can either one of you come and visit Feyley here in the guild from time to time?"

"Visit... Feyley?" I repeated, feeling confused.

"Yes... that's right," Miss Audino held a paw over her chest and sighed. "I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but because of her rather... competitive personality, she has a hard time fitting in and making friends here in the guild. Even amongst girls of her own age, she has a hard time being able to just talk and enjoy her time here."

I tapped a paw against my chin and thought back to earlier. Back at the training hall, didn't Feyley get into a heated argument with that unsavory Kirlia? The two of them didn't look like they had a very good relationship with each other...

"I know it's a little strange for me to ask of this, as I'm neither her mother nor her caretaker, but I do wish to see her enjoy her time here in Treasure Town. So please, if it's not too much trouble, can you all indulge selfish old me for my little request?"

"It's no big deal."

To my surprise, it was Blue who answered. Both Brin and I looked at him with wide eyes, surprised at how glib he was. He was grinning with both of his paws behind his head, and he didn't seem too worried about what he just said.

"Blue?" I couldn't help but wonder why he agreed so fast. While I had no problems with trying to befriend Feyley, I had thought that Blue would be a little more anxious about doing so. After all, he had to suffer through several of her blows earlier.

"I'm sure visiting her won't be as bad when she isn't trying to beat my face in," Blue remarked. "There's still a few things I'd like to ask her about, too, so it works out somewhat."

"Truly? Oh, thank you!" Miss Audino rushed up and grabbed Blue's paws. He let out a yelp of surprise when she started to shake them up and down. "Thank you so much! You don't know how much this means to Feyley!"

Blue looked like his eyes were bouncing around in his head as Miss Audino continued to jump up and down like an excited Spoink, "Y – y – y – you're w – welcome!"

"Oh dear me!" Miss Audino let go of Blue's paws, making him stumble backwards with a dazed look on his face. Both Brin and I rushed behind him so he didn't fall over. "I can already imagine just how pleased Feyley will be when she sees the three of you come and visit! Ohh, she'll be pleased as punch, I would bet! Hoh hoh!"

"Yeah... pleased as punch..." Looking a little as though he was already regretting his decision, Blue clamped a paw on his head and put on a nervous grin. "I'm... I'm sure she will, yeah..."

I glanced over to Brin and gave her a worried look. The Braixen, however, didn't seem too bothered. Instead, she held up both of her hands and mimed unraveling a bandage between them. I gaped at her, then looked over at Blue.

"Brin... you shouldn't use Blue as practice!"

* * *

Walking through Treasure Town at night is a strange, but beautiful experience. It is almost a tradition for most residents here to return to their homes before night falls. The result of that is an odd, almost eerie feeling when one walks through the empty streets. Treasure Town's always so noisy and exciting during the day, after all. Seeing it so dark and empty like this made it feel somewhat... off putting, I suppose.

That being said, it's not all spooky and scary. Before dusk arrives, a crew consisting of Mankey and Primeape swing through the streets and light all the street lamps with torches. Those lamp posts helps a lot when walking through the town at night, as they provide just enough light to help someone see where they were going in the dark.

I never did like walking around in the middle of the night, or just being in the dark in general. I found myself clinging close to Blue again as we trekked back to the Phantom Patisserie. I didn't want him to pull another one of his mean stunts on me like before. If he did that again...

"Guh..."

I looked up at Blue and saw him with his arms wrapped around his chest, shivering. Even though it was in the middle of summer right now, the nights here in the Frontier can still be a little... daunting. The cold didn't bother me too much, since – being an Eevee – I had a very thick coat of fur protecting my body. Brin also didn't seem to concerned with the temperature. Her golden – yellow coat must be thicker than I thought!

But... Blue wasn't so lucky. He might have his blue and black fur covering him, but it made little difference against the blistering winds. Since his fur was so thin, I couldn imagine that he must have been freezing as he walked with us. My thoughts drifted back to when we were at Meowstic's store. Had I been able to buy him that scarf, or anything else really... then maybe he'd be a bit more comfortable in the cold...

"Blue, are you alright?" I asked, worried.

"Huh?" He looked down at me with a surprised look.

"You just seem a little cold," I said. I pointed at one of the nearby lamp posts, "do you want to sit down over there and warm up a bit?"

Blue glanced over at where I was pointing for a moment, and then shook his head. He smiled at me and patted me on the back, "I'll be fine. I can tough it out for a little longer. Don't worry."

"You sure?" I brushed his paw off with my tail and frowned. "You look like you're about to freeze up, Blue."

"Heh... I can't deny that," Blue muttered. He scratched the side of his muzzle with his paw and fell silent. Then, a few quiet seconds later, he put down his paw and smiled at me.

"Actually, I have an idea that'll help."

"Oh?" Curious, I stopped in my tracks and waited for him to tell me his idea. Was he going to sit by the lamp post? Or did he have some other plan in mind? Whatever it was, I couldn't tell. He just kept smiling at me.

"Hold still for a moment, okay?" Blue asked. Seeing no reason to refuse, I sat still and kept waiting. Blue scooted over to my side, and then inched his way behind me. I continued to wonder what he was doing, until I felt a pair of arms wrap around my back.

"Eh?!" I squeaked when I felt my paws leaving the ground. Blue had pulled me into a tight hug, and was carrying me in his arms like a pillow! A shiver rushed down my spine when I felt his paws on my belly, and his warm breath blow against my ears.

"Ah... now that's warm!" My partner let out a relaxed sigh as he rubbed his cheek against the back of my head. "I wish I had a coat of fur as thick as yours, Fée!"

"B – Blue, put me down!" I could feel my face turning white hot, and not because of my thick fur! I tried to squirm out of his grasp, but he held me in such a tight hug that I couldn't even budge an inch! I craned my head around and tried to appeal to him, "Please, this is embarrassing!"

"But you said I should warm up a bit, didn't you?" Blue said as he grinned at me, sending my face into a deep flush. He tapped me on the nose with one of his paws and said, "If I do this, I can keep warm and walk at the same time! And look! If I hold on to you, then you don't need to walk either! It's a win – win situation for the both of us!"

Blue planted his chin atop my head and let out a proud chuckle at his clever plan. I grumbled back at him and tried to swat at his muzzle with my paw, but he just lifted his head up and avoided it. Annoyed at his reflexes, I puffed out my cheeks in a huff and stowed my paws on top of his arms.

"Fine, if you want to carry me so badly, then go ahead!"

"Don't mind if I do!"

"Rrgh..." Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see Brin watching us with a weird look on her face. Mnngh...! I must look ridiculous being carried around like this! Maybe I should nibble on his wrists out of protest!

"Alright, let's head over to Duskull's!" Blue announced in a cheery voice. I gave a half – hearted wave of my paw in response.

"Mm... did somebody speak my name?"

Blue and I both spun around at the sound of that voice. Or rather, Blue spun around and dragged me with him. A scream almost escaped my throat when we did. There were two large, red orbs hovering in the shadows in front of us like a pair of glowing eyes. Terrified, I flattened my ears over my eyes and shuddered in Blue's arms.

Through my muffled ears, I could hear Blue chuckling above me. I felt him unwrap one of his arms off my belly, making me panic and curl my tail up to replace it. Blue chuckled again and patted my head with his paw.

"Don't be afraid, Fée," he said. "look, it's just Duskull and Oro!"

"Duskull...?" Come to think of it, something similar like this happened before too, didn't it? I let one of my ears flip back up, and I peeked out one of my eyes. Through the dim lamp light, I could see the faint outlines of two Pokémon around the red orbs floating in the air. A silly smile crossed my face when I recognized them. It was Duskull and Oro's eyes!

"Oh! Duskull, Oro!" Breathing a sigh of relief, I let my ears spring back up and relaxed my tail. I shook my head and clapped my paws over my burning cheeks to try and cool myself off. I put on a respectful smile and waved at them, "Good evening!"

"Mm... Good evening to you too, Fée. Blue. It's quite a lucky coincidence to have run into the two of you out here in the middle of the night," Duskull said. "I was just in the middle of heading back home after a little shopping."

"Shopping?" I looked a little closer and found that both Duskull and Oro were carrying things. Duskull's robe was wrapped around the handle of a small wicker basket, while Oro had a pair of large, wooden crates hefted atop his shoulders.

"Mm... a certain surprise appeared at my doorstep this noon," Duskull explained, waving his basket at me. "I was... forced out of my house, and told to go procure supplies and… advertise, while she would try to make my Patisserie... mm... _habitable._"

"Forced from your house?" My cheeks puffed out as I held back a giggle threatening to escape my mouth. The Phantom Patisserie was a bit on the dirty side, and I can imagine that Mismagius wouldn't be very happy about it. A scene popped into my head, wherein Mismagius barged into the Patisserie and tossed Duskull out so she could clean it.

"Sounds like you had it rough," Blue remarked.

"Mm... but not as rough as you, I'd imagine." Duskull's robe fluttered as he chuckled. "I saw you fly through the sky today, Blue. Did you have some fun?"

"Erk..." Blue rubbed the back of his head as he gave a nervous laugh. I glanced up at my partner and gave him a quizzical look.

Duskull hung his basket on to one of Oro's branches and floated over to us, "I see that your leg is healed as well, my boy. How does it feel?"

"Oh, right!" Blue grinned as he held out his leg to show him. "It's all fixed up and healthy now! And it's all thanks to Brin!"

"...Brin?"

Duskull eye shrunk when he heard her name. He spun around, his eye fluttering around inside of his skull face as if he was trying to look for her. I glanced around as well, trying to find where Brin had gone. She was with us just a few minutes ago, wasn't she?

"Mn..."

Blue and I both turned at the sound of Brin's hum. We caught a glimpse of her bright, golden – yellow fur by the side of the street. For some reason, she hid herself behind one of the lamp posts by the side of the street. She was peering out at us with a single eye, while the rest of her body was covered by the black iron.

"Brin!" I shouted at her, waving my paw. "What are you doing over there? Look, it's Duskull! You remember him, right?"

She edged out from behind the lamp post a little more, revealing a bit more of her face. She looked very nervous, and kept fidgeting the small bottle in her hands. I opened my mouth again to try and convince her, but I stopped when I felt a cold robe touch me on the head.

"Mm... I see," Duskull murmured as he floated on past Blue and I. "it has been... a while since we last seen each other... hasn't it?"

Duskull shook his head as he made his way over to Brin. He stopped in front of the lamp post, hovering before Brin's half – hidden face. Brin didn't move, she didn't hide or try to run. Instead, she just stared right back at Duskull, staring into his single eye. For several minutes, the two of them didn't say a word.

I reached up with my paw and patted Blue in the cheek. My partner nodded, and let me back down onto the ground. We took a look at Duskull and Brin, and then backed away. I took my place beside Blue, while he stood next to Oro.

"Brin..." Duskull's voice sounded much quieter than before. Even at this distance, I could see that he was trembling as he spoke. "Brin... do you still remember me...?"

Brin still didn't act. She continued to stare back at Duskull, wordless and motionless. A cold feeling of worry slipped through the back of my head as I watched this nervous scene unfold. I had thought that Brin would be happy to see Duskull again, after all the time they spent apart. But now... seeing how nervous my friend looked... I wasn't too sure anymore.

"You've grown so much... even now, I can't fully remember how long it has been since I've... I've..." Duskull shook his head and coughed. "Brin... I can understand... if you don't want to talk to me..."

A part of me wanted to run up and say something, anything to try and help. But when that thought ran through my head, I felt Blue's paw touch me on the back. When I looked up, I saw him shaking his head at me.

"I wanted to visit... I wanted to meet you and Mismagius again... But, I was afraid... I didn't know how you and Mismagius would've reacted to me showing up... After all, I had... kept myself away from your lives for so long..."

Duskull shuddered as held his robe over his face. I couldn't see from here, but I think... I think he may be crying...

"I'm so sorry... I should've stayed with you and Mismagius, all those years ago... I thought myself as the better Pokémon, and I didn't think of both you and Mismagius's wishes then... And because of this foolish old Pokémon's ego, I've left the two of you alone for so long..."

Duskull coughed again, "Brin... you've grown so much now... Had I not been such a fool... Had I kept the vow I made with Delphox... Then I would've been able to watch you grow into such a beautiful young girl with my own eye..."

Brin covered her mouth with her hands, and she began to tremble against the lamp post. She still didn't say a word to him, and was still hiding herself. I could feel my heart beat against my chest as I watched the two of them. Oro and Blue both seemed nervous as well; Blue kept ruffling the fur on my back over and over again, while Oro kept fidgeting with his crates.

I held my paws to my ruff and breathed deep. I know that I had no part in any of this, but... I still wished for Brin to forgive Duskull. Brin... please...

"Brin..." Duskull spoke in a hushed whisper. I almost couldn't hear him over the sound of my own heart. He held out his cloak to Brin's face, and said, "I... I know I've been absent for most of your life... and I know... I don't deserve to hear you speak to me..."

"But... do you still... can you still... call me your grandfather?"

"Du... Da..."

Everyone jumped when we heard Brin's voice. She squeezed her eyes shut, and her hands were pressed against her chest. Tears streamed down her face as she moved away from the lamp post, and toward Duskull.

"Dus... Dusk..." Brin held out her arms, and opened her eyes. A teary smile came onto her face as she reached forward, and pulled Duskull into her chest for a hug!

"Grandpa... Grandpa Duskull...!"

"Brin...!"

I clapped my paws over my smiling mouth when I saw the two of them embracing, while Blue and Oro both cheered for them behind me. Brin wrapped her arms around Duskull while she spun around on the balls of her feet. Both of them were still crying, but they were crying tears of happiness!

"Oh... oh Brin...!" Duskull sounded so happy as they hugged. "Do you really forgive me? Do you... do you really still think of me as family?"

"Grandpa...! Gra... grandpa...!"

"Thank you... thank you so much..."

* * *

"You two will be heading home now, yes?"

Duskull, Oro and Brin were all standing with each other. Brin was sitting on top of one of Oro's crates, kicking her legs as she held Duskull's basket in her lap. Duskull was hovering in front of Blue and I. His robes were a little stained, and his single eye was still a little watery. But it didn't matter to him. He looked elated, and I noticed that he just couldn't stop floating up and down.

I nodded, "It's been fun, but I think we'd best head back to our guild before the sun rises. Blue and I have been out on the town for far too long today, and I think we'd both like to have a little rest."

Duskull chuckled and waved his robe at me, "Mm... it's a shame. I would've liked to have the two of you over so I could properly thank you for everything you've done for me... and my family."

I shook my head at Duskull, "No, we should be the ones thanking you, Duskull." I whipped my tail at Blue's leg and smiled, "If it wasn't for your cooperation, we'd never been able to heal Blue's injury. It's all thanks to you."

"Mm... you're too polite, my dear." Duskull chuckled again. He turned around and floated up to where Brin was sitting. He retrieved the small basket from Brin and returned to us with the basket held in his robe.

"Here, Fée. Blue," he held out the entire basket to us. "take it. It's all for you two to enjoy."

"What's this?" I nipped the handle of the basket with my teeth and put it down on the ground in front of us. Blue crouched down beside me, looking just as curious as I am as I flipped open the lid.

"Oh, wow!"

A wondrous aroma wafted out from the basket, making my fur bristle and my nose twitch. If I had a little less self control, I would've started drooling on the spot! It's hard not to! After all, that basket was stuffed to the brim with an entire bakery's worth of fresh bread and pastries!

"Did you make all of this yourself, Duskull?" I asked, tearing my eyes (and nose) away from the delectable basket. "This is amazing!"

"Mm... you flatter me, Fée." A patch of pink appeared on Duskull's face as he chuckled. "But yes, this is all the finest bread you can find at my Patisserie. But you know that, don't you?"

"Of course!" I couldn't help myself, and plucked out a small bun from the basket. It was still a little warm to the touch, and, above all else, it smelled scrumptious!

Ahh... I want to eat it right now! But... it would be impolite to just start scarfing down in front of Duskull and everyone else, so I should put it back and save it for later.

"You're not gonna eat that? Well, I'll take it then!"

All of a sudden, Blue's paw appeared out of nowhere and snatched the bun out of my grasp. I looked up at him, aghast, as he just tossed the flavorful pastry into his mouth. A sinking, despairing feeling flooded through me as I watched my tasty bun disappear down his throat. It got even worse when Blue rubbed his belly, sighing out of contentment.

"That was delicious!"

"Blue!" I bumped my head against his side and growled. "That was mine!"

"Eh? But you looked like you were going to put it back, so I thought–."

"I was gonna save it for later!" I turned my back to him and whipped him with my tail. "Hmph!"

"Aw, come on, Fée! I'm sure there's more in the basket, so don't get mad!"

"Hmph!"

"Hm, hm..." Duskull's chuckle floated over toward us. He held out his robe and flipped the lid on the basket shut. "You needn't worry about that, Fée. I've made sure that there are plentiful amounts of every kind of bread in that basket. It's all for the two of you to share, after all."

He picked up the basket and pushed it into Blue's arms. Then, he returned to back to Brin's side and gave us a wave.

"Mm... Fée, Blue... Be sure to come and visit the Patisserie sometime." Duskull patted Brin on the shoulder with his robe, and they both bowed to us. "You've both done so much, and there's much we are thankful for. If there is any time you feel like you have an appetite for my baking... Then please, come by any time."

"Duskull, of course we'll come visit!" I beamed at them as I returned their bow with a wave of my paws. I looked at Brin and clapped my paws together, "And Brin, I still need to take you to the library some time as well! Don't let me forget, okay?"

"Fée...!" Brin mimicked my action and clapped her hands together as well. She then turned to look at Blue, and waved her arm at him. "Blue...!"

"I'll definitely come and visit you again, Brin!" Blue said. "And I'll make sure it's not because I got hurt!"

Brin and I both giggled at Blue's remark. Duskull then hovered over to Oro and whispered something to him. Oro nodded and put down one of the crates in his arms. He transferred the crate that Brin was sitting on to in between his large, claw – like hands, and lifted it high above his head.

"Ahh...!" Brin waved both of her arms high above her head, smiling and cheering as she looked over the beautiful night view of my beloved Treasure Town. Duskull then floated back down to me, and gave me a curt nod.

"Once more... thank you two so much... Fée... Blue..."

A little proud flame lit up inside my chest. A grin crept onto my face as I nodded back at Duskull. He gave me a pat on the head with his robe, and then returned to Oro's side. The three of them then turned and made their way down the street, and back to their home. Brin shifted her seat on Oro's crate, and kept waving back at us until they disappeared into the night.

I put down my paw, and turned to look at Blue. He also had a funny grin on his face, just like mine. It was a weird feeling, I admit, to be thanked by somebody for something we did. I got the same feeling when I read Marill's letter. I'd never felt someone else's gratitude like this before, and I never would've imagined myself in a situation like this prior to becoming an explorer.

"Becoming an explorer..." I mumbled to myself. Helping others, going on expeditions, and meeting new Pokémon... Ehe! It all sounded so fun and exciting! I spun around on the spot, letting my tail whip around me in a circle. Then, I crouched low and leapt into Blue's chest.

"Oof!" Blue staggered back a few paces as he caught me in his arms. "Fée, what's the matter?"

"Ehe… You said you were cold, right?" I rubbed my cheek against his chest, and smiled up at his face. "Then here! You can carry me back to the guild!"

I puffed out my fur, curled up my tail, and settled myself nice and comfortable within his embrace. I didn't feel embarrassed at all now. After all, this is my partner, and my friend! And if it wasn't for him… I never would've been able to become an explorer!

"Heh... alright," Blue leaned down and picked up Duskull's basket before securing his arms around my belly. "Let's go home, then."

"Let's go home, Blue!"


	32. Bonus: My Role

**•   
Bonus Chapter  
**

**"My role"  
**

* * *

"Hey, freeloaders! Get the heck outta here before I toss all of you out the window!"

_Kacha, kacha! _

Blue flattened himself against the side of the corridor as a crowd of panicked Spinarak scrambled past him. He watched with mild curiosity as the wave of green – bodied bugs disappeared into the many nooks and crannies surrounding the cave – like corridor of his guildhouse. One particular Spinarak lagged behind the rest, taking the time to spittle at Loudred and clack its mandibles out of indignation before scuttling away into a small crack on the wall.

Loudred tromped into the corridor, and jammed his eye against the wall. He glared into the crack, and growled at the Spinarak hiding inside. All of a sudden, a green head popped out, and spat a glob of white goop onto Loudred's face. Yelping, Loudred recoiled and fell onto his rear with a dull thump as the Spinarak clacked its mandible in amusement.

"Guh..." Loudred reached up with a wide hand and wiped the goop off his face. He smeared it onto his thigh and glared back at the wall. The Spinarak made another quick, insulting clack of its mandible and vanished back into the crack.

"Yeah, you better hide!" Loudred warned, shaking his fist at the hidden Spinarak. "If I see any of your green faces again, you'll all be in for some serious trouble!"

He waited for a response, but the only sound that came back was his own echoing voice. Satisfied, Loudred snorted and turned back around with a smug look on his face, and his hands on his hips. He thumped his chest with a fist as he sauntered back to Blue.

"Spinarak, what can you do?" He made a big show of shaking his head, and sighing. "Every time we turn our heads, a ton of those lousy critters move in and think that they own the place. And since they all live inside the walls, we can't get rid of'em either."

"That one seemed to know you pretty well," Blue remarked, jabbing a paw toward the crack on the wall. "or at least, he wasn't afraid of you at all."

Loudred shrugged, "Eh, how would I know? They all look the same to me." He glanced down at the smudge of white goo on his finger and snorted. "If that cheeky little one was the ringleader of his gang, then I wouldn't be surprised. It's got spunk." He waved his hand and turned around, grinning. "Either way, let's quit talkin' about bugs out here and get you to your new room."

At the end of the corridor was a mess of thick, leafy vines trailing down from the ceiling. At first, Blue thought nothing of it. He thought that it was just a wall that was overgrown with vegetation. But then, Loudred took his arm and jammed it through the curtain of green. His eyes widened as Loudred brushed aside all the vines, revealing a doorway to another room behind it.

"Come on in, Blue," Loudred said as he held the vines clear for Blue. "take a gander at where you'll be sleeping from now on!"

Blue trotted underneath Loudred's outstretched arm and through the thick greens. Once he was through, Blue took a gander around at his surroundings. The room wasn't very big, but it wasn't what one would call small either. It took the shape of a rough circle, with the walls curving inward near the top to form a domed ceiling.

Compared to the rest of the guild, the room looked to be in a very rough shape. Outcroppings of rough stone and tree roots protruded from the floor, the walls, and even the ceiling above. Furthermore, there were no furniture at all. The only form of décor in the room was a single circular window, carved out of the wall with a pair of wooden logs fitted inside in the shape of a cross.

No matter where Blue looked, he could find small piles of dust and junk lying around. Thin lines of Spinarak webbing gleamed on the floor and walls, illuminated by the dim moonlight streaming in from the window. He walked over to the side of the room, and bent down to pick up a plank of wood that had been snapped in half.

"Ah..." Loudred's voice made Blue turn around, still holding the plank. His guildmate stood in the center of the derelict room, looking sheepish as he scratched the back of his head. "I didn't think it'd be this bad... I mean, I guess it would be stupid to think otherwise... After all, nobody stayed in this room for over four seasons... heh."

"No one else has slept here before?" Blue asked as he tossed the plank over his shoulder. "Shouldn't there have been other apprentices before me?"

"Yeah, about that," Loudred held his hand up to his large mouth and feigned a cough. "lately, we've been pretty down on our luck when it comes to getting new apprentices. Just a while ago, we had a pair of newbies – just like you and Fée – quit all of a sudden."

Loudred sighed and shrugged, "Other than Bidoof and the two of ya, we've been in kind of a slump with recruiting newcomers. Heh..." He slumped his head and shoulders as he muttered, "we might be the most well – known guild out of the three here in town, but when it comes to getting new apprentices, we're the least – lucky..."

Blue tapped his chin and mulled over his own experiences. To be honest, had he not been introduced to Wigglytuff's Guild by Fée, he might not have even given it a thought. After all, compared to the showy exhibition that Machoke had thrown back at the Town Plaza, Wigglytuff's Guild seemed almost boring in comparison. It also doesn't help that the Wigglytuff's Guildhouse has a rather terrifying entrance, if Fée's comments were anything to go by.

"Don't tell Chatot I went and blabbed to you about that, though!" Loudred said, his eyes bugging out. "He's still in a bit of a high after the two of you decided to join, and if he catches wind that I've been talking about our misfortunes again, he'll be in a bad mood again for weeks!"

Loudred held up his hand to his mouth and made an extravagant show of zipping his lips to Blue. Grinning, Blue nodded and mimed the motion back at him.

"Great!" Loudred said as he pounded his fist against his chest. "Now I don't have to worry about my big mouth getting me into trouble again! Haha!"

He let out a hearty chuckle and slapped Blue on the back, making the wincing Riolu regret standing so close to him. While Blue recovered from his new, hand – shaped bruise, Loudred strolled over to left side of the room. There, a long root stretched out from the ceiling and burrowed its way into the floor like a rather crooked pillar.

Loudred glanced left and right around the root for a moment, before ducking behind it. Blue watched through teary eyes as his boisterous guildmate rummaged around behind the root. A few noisy seconds later, Loudred reappeared with a large bushel of yellow hay in his arms.

"Here we are!" Loudred grinned wide as he let go of the hay, letting it fall onto the floor with an unceremonious thump.

"What's this?" Blue asked. He picked up a single straw and spun it around his fingers. "Your dinner?"

"Oho, very funny," Loudred snatched the straw out of Blue's paws and threw it back down onto the pile. "if it was, then you'd be sleeping on the stone tonight!"

"Sleeping on the... wait, you mean this is my bed?"

Loudred chortled and folded his arms, "What, were you expecting a soft mattress and a blanket?"

"Kinda."

Loudred let out a roaring laugh, forcing Blue to cringe and clamp his paws over his ears. The deafening guildmate threw his arm around the Riolu's shoulders, and sat the two of them down beside the haystack. Blue looked over at Loudred, and saw a beaming grin directed at him.

"Don't look so disappointed, Blue!" Loudred said. "Go on, take a lie down! I betcha it's a lot more comfortable than you'd think!"

The thought of sleeping on a pile of straw made Blue hesitate a bit. In no way did that sharp and spindly pile look like a comfortable place to sleep. In the moonlight, it looked more like a pit of spikes than a soft place to rest. To the Riolu, even the stone floor seemed like a more attractive alternative to his 'bed.'

"Hoy, if you keep waffling around, none of us will be getting any sleep soon!"

Blue shot Loudred a skeptical look, but his gleeful guildmate just stepped back and gestured toward the pile of hay with his fingers. Sighing, Blue looked away from his beaming grin and back to the pile of yellow.

"Here goes nothing..." Blue turned around and flopped onto the pile of hay. He squeezed his eyes tight, tucked in his arms and shoulders, and held his breath as he assumed the worst. His back touched the straw, sending a tingle down his spine and making him shudder. Images of tiny needles poking against his back flashed through his mind, making it even more of a mental ordeal for the boy to just lie down on a pile of hay.

_Whumpfh!_

"Gah!" The pile couldn't hold up under the Riolu's weight. It flattened down like a pancake, sending dust, straw and a single Spinarak flying around the room as Blue sank down into the pile of yellow. The Spinarak spun around a few times in the air before landing back down on the floor.

_Clack, clack!_ Indignant at being evicted from its home, the Spinarak shook its front legs at Loudred and Blue before scuttling out the door to join the rest of its brethren.

"So? Was it as bad as you thought, Blue?"

Blue laid on his now – flat as a pancake bed with his arms and legs all splayed out over the straw. He glanced over at his right arm, and curled his paw a few times. Despite his prior worries, his bed did feel somewhat comfortable. While it was nowhere near as soft or warm as the bed he had slept on back at Machoke's, it wasn't as bad as he had imagined.

Sighing, Blue straightened himself out and stretched his arms and legs. In a way, the roughness of the straw felt pretty good against his fur. It wasn't spiky, or scratchy, but had a strange texture all of its own. It made him feel more comforted than irritated.

"It's not bad," he said. "I think I like this."

"Ha, I knew you would!"

Blue patted the sides of his straw bed, and looked around. Something odd popped out to him as an idle thought flew through his mind. The size of his bed was just enough to fit himself, but...

"Say, where will Fée be sleeping?" Blue glanced back to the vine – covered doorway. He was expecting to see Fée standing there, but to no avail. There was nobody at the door, only the slight movement from the vines being blown about by the wind. He turned back to Loudred and folded his arms. "There's hardly any space left when I'm lying on it. Is there another pile of straw lying somewhere in here?"

"Hooh?" A snide look flitted onto Loudred's broad face as he rubbed his chin. "Feeling a little lonely, are we?"

Blue cocked his head to the side, "What?"

"Ha!" Loudred strode over and sat down beside Blue's bed, grinning into his confused face. "Sorry to disappoint you, loverboy, but your partner's off sleeping with Sunflora and Chimecho!"

"Eh?"

"It's a shame, I know," Loudred folded his arms and sent the frowning Riolu a sympathetic nod. "our last pair of apprentices voiced the same complaint at being separated like this. But this here's a guildhouse! We can't be having any funny business going on at night, y'know?"

"Then... that means I'll be sleeping in this room by myself?"

"I gotta say sorry about that, Blue. If I had my way, you'd be sleeping with me, Corphish and ol' Doofy. But as it stands right now, our room's a bit of a disaster zone with three guys lying around."

Loudred clutched his belly and chortled, "There'd be no place for you to sleep, ha! Unless you'd like to curl up into a ball in a corner with your tail tucked between your arms and legs!"

"Ugh..." Blue cringed as he imagined having to sleep in a position like that. He shook his head, which elicited a snort and a nod from his companion.

"Count your lucky stars that you got your own room, Blue." Loudred said. "Even though you might be sleepin' alone for a while, at least you got your privacy. So don't look so down, alright?"

"I suppose..." The Riolu sighed and shook his head. "I've never had to sleep alone before though. It feels a bit weird..."

"What, you and Fée've been sleeping together every day or something?" Loudred asked, a knowing smile plastered on his mug.

Blue thought back to the prior few days. From the Beach Cave, and all the way to the Forlorn Forest, he had never been separated from his partner at nights. Sleeping alone, being away from his friend, even if it was for just a night... Just the thought of that made him shiver a bit. He couldn't quite understand what it was, but he couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.

"Ah, I'm just teasing you! No need to put on a pouty face like that!" Loudred balled his hand into a fist and thumped it against Blue's chest. He gave Blue another grin and added, "Lookie here, Blue. You're a strong little guy, I can see that. After all, I don't know a many Pokémon your age that'd rush out to adventure and excitement with a banged up leg!"

"I didn't do that by myself though," Blue admitted.

Loudred slapped his hand over his own face as he let out another roaring laugh, "If you can handle protectin' that little Azurill while beatin' down that scumbag Drowzee, then you can handle sleepin' by yourself for a while, Blue!"

Even though the big – mouthed Pokémon was a bit on the boisterous side – maybe a bit too much so – Blue couldn't help but crack a smile at his antics. As he waited for the ringing noise inside his head to die down, Blue began to mull over what Loudred said.

_Protecting... _That word seemed to peal far louder than Loudred's voice. He held his paw up to his mouth, and closed his eyes as he thought back to the times he had to raise his fists. He thought of his partner, of Azurill, of Brin...

"Hey Loudred, I have a question."

"Mrgh?" Loudred's mouth clamped shut as he cut his laugh short. He turned back to Blue with an awkward – looking grin on his face. "What is it? I can answer anything as long as it's not about girls, haha!"

Blue shook his head, "Girls? No, it's not about that. I just want to ask you something about exploring."

"Exploring eh?" Loudred chuckled and folded his arms. "Well, you're asking the right Pokémon! What do'ya wanna know?"

"Um..." Blue coughed into his fist as he tried to figure out how to best phrase his question. "It's... erm, Loudred. You've been an explorer... for a while now, right?"

"Eh? The heck kinda question is that?" Loudred unhooked a hand and leaned his chin on top of his fist, looking disgruntled. "Of course I have! I've been explorin' since before you even learned how to read, I bet!"

_I still don't know how to read, though..._ Blue muttered inside his head. He coughed into his fist again and threw that thought away. "What I mean is... when you go out exploring, do you often get into fights?"

"What do'ya mean by fights?" Loudred tapped his finger against his chin. "You talkin' about hunting down outlaws or something?"

"Yeah," Blue nodded. "something like that. I'm just wondering... When you get into a fight, do you like it?"

Loudred made a pensive hum and laid down on his side, resting the side of his face on his palm. He looked away from Blue, and turned his gaze over to the moonlight shining in from the window. He kept silent for a while – a feat for the loud Pokémon – as he ruminated over how to respond.

"Fighting... huh?" Loudred sighed and waved an arm around above him. "To be honest with you, I ain't too keen on fighting, especially when I'm out on an expedition. If I ever find myself in a situation where someone's rearing to get a piece of me, I'd prefer to get outta there instead of staying for a scrap. It's much safer that way, you know?"

"But..." Blue glanced toward the vine – covered door again before looking back at Loudred. "what if you can't avoid it?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean… what if I can't just run away? What if I have to fight, to protect someone?"

"Hm, hm… someone, eh?" A grin slid onto the big Pokémon's face. Loudred planted his hands against the ground and shoved himself back up. He folded his arms across his chest and looked into Blue's troubled face.

"I got a question for ya, Blue! Listen up!"

"Huh?"

Loudred chuckled and thumped his chest with a fist, "Think of this: when you're out on an adventure, and you spot someone being harassed by a bunch of no – good ruffians, what is the first thing you'd do?"

"Why are you even asking? I'd go help that Pokémon!" Blue stated with no hesitation. "I mean, isn't that the normal thing to do?"

"Hah! Now that's the answer I was looking for!" As if to punctuate his words, Loudred reared back and let out a roaring laugh. Blue winced and clamped his paws over his heads again, trying to block out the horrid echo filling his small room.

"You're a strong one, Blue. Ain't no one's gonna be denying that with all you've done so far." Loudred chuckled as he nodded to himself. "But y'know? It doesn't matter if you're strong or if you're weak if you don't use that power you have in a meaningful way."

"A meaningful way?" Blue repeated.

"That's right! A meaningful way!" Loudred spun around, showing Blue his back. He held up his right arm, and jabbed a finger at his right shoulder. "Take a look!"

The Riolu cringed as Loudred shunted his broad back closer to his face. Confusion and a little bit of repulsion ran through his mind. What was he meant to see? Loudred had a very impressive physique, yes, but he doubted that all he wanted to do was show off his bulging muscles. He had enough of that from Machoke.

"Y'got a good look yet?" Loudred asked. He spun around and puffed out his chest. "I can see that you're impressed!"

"Erm... I guess?" Blue coughed and looked away. "What is this about?"

"Heh... I ain't showing you my muscles just to show off," Loudred said as he flexed his biceps. He reached out with his right arm, curled it in front of his chest and presented his shoulder to Blue. "but more importantly, this is what I mean."

"Your... shoulder?"

"That's right," Loudred nodded. "you're strong – I've said that already – ain't no one's gonna be contestin' that. But what if you're with someone who isn't as strong as you? Like... 'ferinstance, that cute Eevee friend of yours?"

"Fée's strong!" Blue growled.

"Haha, I didn't mean it that way, Blue!" Loudred shook his head and prodded Blue in the chest with a finger. "But even you have to admit, you're a ways stronger than your partner. I'll be willing to bet that, if anything dangerous rears its ugly head, you'd jump in front of her without even thinkin', wouldn't ya?"

"I… guess I would...?"

A memory resurfaced inside of Blue's mind. It was a scene from yesterday, of him and Fée. Before they had set off to the Forlorn Forest, Fée ran into trouble with a threatening dragon by the name of Lazur. Even though his leg was in an awful condition, he still rushed in front of his friend with the intent of fighting the dragon off. All for the sake of keeping his partner safe.

The same happened when he saw Fée fighting Oro. Even though she promised to protect him while he was injured, he couldn't just sit back and let her get hurt. He needed to protect her, he wanted to. Like Loudred said, he had charged in without even thinking. He wrapped his arms around one of the Trevenant's fallen claws, and swung it at Oro as a weapon. All for the sake of keeping his friend safe.

One last memory appeared. He remembered seeing Fée's unconscious body, covered in dirt and wounds after the fight with Zubat and Koffing. It was a sight that made him feel disgusted and horrified. Not at anyone else, but at himself. He hated himself for being unable to prevent that, and cursed himself for letting such a thing happen.

After all, Fée was his partner. And not just that, the Eevee was also his first friend. The first Pokémon he met upon waking up into this world. To the amnesiac Riolu, she was all he had. It doesn't matter if he got hurt, or if he was forced to fight. As long as she, and everyone else he cared about was safe, he could feel satisfied.

But... that day, in that clearing. Had Fée got hurt even worse... if she had an injury more severe than just that cut on her head. How could he ever forgive himself? There was no excuse he could've made – and even if there was, he would never accept it. He wouldn't. He couldn't...

"H – hey, what's the matter?"

Loudred's voice pierced through his thoughts, and brought him back to reality. Blue shook his head, and held up his paw. As he did though, he felt something wet splash onto his fur. He looked down, and saw a dark, wet patch on the back of his paw.

"Huh?" He touched his face, and felt a stream of tears trickle down from his eyes. "What... am I crying?"

"You just noticed?!" Loudreds eyes bugged out as his jaw crashed onto the floor. Shaking his head, Loudred recovered and coughed into his hand while Blue wiped the water off of his fur with the back of his paw.

"Sorry... I don't know what came over me there," Blue muttered. "I'm alright now, don't worry."

"Was I something I said?" Loudred grumbled, folding his arms. "Sunflora always told me I'm kinda tactless, but I've never made another guy cry before..."

"It's not your fault, Loudred," Blue said, shaking his head. "I just... thought of something sad... no, something bad. That's why I... I guess that's why I couldn't help but cry a bit... heh..."

"Lemme guess: you were thinking of your friend, weren't ya?"

"Erm..." Blue looked away, and plucked up a pawful of straw from his bed. He fiddled around with the strands, tossing them between his two paws as he struggled to find a way to answer the grinning Loudred.

"Bingo then," Loudred sighed and reached over his arm, snatching the straws out of Blue's paws. He separated the bundle, leaving only two strands of yellow in his hand. He stuck one inside his mouth, balancing it between his lips. He handed the other over to Blue, who accepted it with a look of confusion on his face.

"Lemme make another guess," Loudred said. "when you and Fée were out there on your first expedition, something bad happened and she got hurt. And you couldn't prevent it. That's why she has that big bandage wrapped about her head, am I right?"

Blue felt a pang of regret rise up inside his chest, and he averted his gaze from Loudred again. His guildmate chuckled, and patted the Riolu on the shoulder.

"Look Blue, I know exactly what you're feeling right now," he moved his hand from Blue's shoulder, and pressed the tip of his finger against the Riolu's chest. "in here, you probably feel like a big, ol' pile of dirt, dont'cha?"

"...yeah," Blue muttered, imagining himself as a blob of mud instead of a Riolu. Loudred made another loud sigh and shook his head.

"Wasn't expecting you to agree with me there, err..." He looked away for a moment to reorganize his thoughts. After feigning a cough into his fist, Loudred turned back to the despondent Riolu with his chest puffed out and his jaw set.

"Listen to me, Blue," Loudred started again, this time with a bit more force behind his voice. He held his finger up to Blue's forehead, and pushed his head back up. "I've seen more than my fair share of my friends and partners get hurt before. Every time, I wonder to myself afterward. What could've I done to prevent that from happening?"

Loudred sighed, "But whenever I play back those scenes in my head, I just feel worse and worse. I shout at my past self, 'why was I such an idiot?' or 'why couldn't you have went along with her to begin with?'"

Blue found himself nodding along with Loudred's words. Even though he didn't know what Loudred had been through, the Riolu could tell that Loudred's experiences mirrored his own. The sense of guilt that Loudred felt then, was no doubt the same as his own now. His respect for his fellow guildmate grew, and he wanted to learn a little bit more from Loudred.

"But, you know?" Loudred continued, snapping Blue out of his reverie. "After I spent a long time moping, feeling sorry and angry at myself. I came to a realization."

"A realization?" Blue echoed. "What was it?"

Loudred pointed at the straw that Blue held in his paw, and grinned. He gestured to the straw that he was balancing on his lip, and motioned for the Riolu to do the same. Blue glanced down at the strand of yellow for a moment, and nodded. Loudred waited for Blue to bite down on his own bit of straw, before continuing with his lecture.

"No matter how much we wish that we could've fixed what happened, we can't! We can sit here, whine, cry and scream at the 'us' back then for messing up as much as we want, but at the end, crying and wishing won't fix anything at all!"

Loudred nibbled on his straw as he closed his eyes, "But... if we have all this time to cry, why not spend the time doing something a bit more productive?! After all, what's done is done. There's no way for any of us to go back into the past and change things, no matter how much we want to."

"So... then what do we do?" Blue asked, flicking the straw in his mouth from side to side.

Grinning, Loudred held out his right arm, and flexed it. He turned a bit to the side, and thrust his shoulder toward Blue. Confusion flooded the Riolu's face again as his gaze flitted between Loudred's muscled back, and his grinning face. Loudred raised up his other arm, and knocked against his shoulder with his knuckles.

"To be a strong partner..." Loudred puffed out his chest and snorted. "you need to have a strong shoulder!"

Blue turned around and glanced at his own shoulder, perplexed at what Loudred was saying. After seeing Loudred's shoulder, his own seemed small and insignificant in comparison.

Loudred relaxed his arms and reached out toward the Riolu. "You know, a strong shoulder to carry the weight of all your burdens, all the responsibility you have dumped onto you! Even if it feels like the heaviest thing in the world, even if it feels like your back is about to break into two, you can't just let it drop! You have to handle it all, because that's your job – your role as a partner!"

"What do you mean, my role?"

Loudred's fingers tightened around Blue's shoulder, digging themselves into his fur and forcing the boy to wince from his guildmate's surprising force. He opened one red eye, and saw Loudred staring right at him – his eyes shining with a serious gleam, and his mouth curled into a slight, confident smile.

"You're Fée's partner, aren't ya?" Loudred chuckled as he shook his head. "The both of you are still young. You both have plenty of time and space to grow, so don't feel so down about a few scrapes and scratches! Even if you fall down, you get back up! Even if the going seems impossible, you keep trying! That's your role – your responsibility! To protect the ones close to us!"

"You might feel like you're buried deep in the mud right now, Blue. But you can't let that hold you back! Go ahead, cry, whine, rage at yourself as much as y'want – but y'still have to stand up in the end! Wipe those tears away from your cheeks, and stand up straight! If y'let your self – pity stand in your way, you'll never grow stronger, trust me on that!"

A shoulder that can carry even the heaviest of burdens, and the strength to protect those that are close to him. What Loudred told him resonated within his heart, bringing with it a small – yet radiant flame that drove away the icy shame chilling his insides. The Riolu held his paw over his chest, imagining the flame burning against his palm.

Even if he couldn't prevent Fée from getting hurt, he still kept her safe in the end. Scrapes, and scratches. He'll keep those away from his friend in the future. He'll get stronger – strong enough that he'll never have to see her in danger. Because...

"Fée's my partner." Blue held his paw to his shoulder and tapped it with his knuckles. A grin appeared on his face as he gave a nod to Loudred. "No – not just my partner. She's my friend, and the most important Pokémon to me."

"Oh?" Loudred's eyes grew wide at the Riolu's sudden, confident statement.

"For her sake, I'll get stronger." Blue continued. His grin grew broader, and the light in his red eyes brighter as he felt more and more confident. "I'll become as strong as I can, and then stronger than that! So much so that I'll be able to protect her from anything! Because... that's my job, my role, and my responsibility as a partner – and a friend!"

"Hahah!" Loudred clapped his hands together, and reared his head back to unleash a loud wave of laughter. Blue didn't cringe, nor did he wince. Instead, the Riolu twitched his ears and stayed firm until his guildmate's explosive laughter ended.

"Hoo...! You're tryin' to knock me out with that, are ya?" Loudred said as he held his heaving chest. He shook his head and wiped a bit of sweat off of his brow before continuing. "Couldn't have said it better m'self, you little charmer! But you should save those lines for your partner, not me!"

"Erm?" Blue's confident look slipped away a bit as he tried to parse what Loudred meant. He didn't get far though, as a sudden weight crashed down upon his head – forcing him to cough and cringe. He glanced up, and saw that Loudred has planted his hand atop his head.

"You're a good Pokémon, Blue," Loudred said as he rubbed Blue's head. "Fée's lucky to have made a friend like you."

Blue just sat still, letting his guildmate chuckle and ruffle his fur. He felt a little strange to be on the receiving end of something like this. It wasn't a bad feeling though – being petted like this by someone else, Blue admitted. After all, he was used to petting and rubbing Fée's head whenever she felt down.

He thought about Fée, and how much she had grown since he first met the Eevee back at the beach. He recalled her shining face back when they stood in the middle of the Guildmaster's office. That day, he saw his friend recite her dream to Chatot and the Guildmaster, about how she wished to go out and see the world with her own eyes. It was her dream, the one thing she sought most to fulfill.

A dream...

Blue reached up to his lips, and pulled the straw out of his mouth. He stared at the single strand of yellow on his palm. As he watched it gleam in the moonlight, a single question floated into mind, burning bright like a torch in the middle of the night.

"Loudred?" Blue muttered, not looking up. "Can I ask you one more thing?"

Grinning, Loudred pulled his hand off of Blue's head and folded his arms, "Go ahead!"

The Riolu gripped the straw in his palm, and looked up into Loudred's waiting expression. But right as he opened his mouth, a sudden jolt of pain shot through his gut. The shock wrapped itself around his question, strangling it and forcing it back down right as he was about to speak – leaving behind a burning, nauseating feeling in its wake.

"Ggh...!" Blue clamped his paws over his mouth and doubled over as he began to cough.

"H – hey, what's the matter?" Startled, Loudred clamped his hands onto Blue's shoulders and gave him a shake. "Did'ja choke on your spit or something? Hey!"

Blue shook his head. He moved his paws away from his mouth, and sucked in a lungful of cool air. He didn't understand what just happened. He took his paw and patted his chest, then his belly. It couldn't have been from something he ate; Duskull's bread was too good to cause such a reaction. Perplexed, Blue couldn't figure out why that just happened.

"Aagh... maybe y'shouldn't have bit down on that straw," Loudred scratched his cheek as he shot the Riolu an embarrassed look. He plucked out the straw from his own mouth and flicked it away. "must've been something bad on it. Blasted Spinarak. You alright now?"

"Y... yeah, I think I'm fine now," Blue gave his stomach another wary pat. The pain disappeared as quick as it came. He felt fine, almost as if that coughing fit had never happened...

"Hrm... well, y'still got that question for me?" Loudred asked.

"Erm..." Blue held a paw up to his forehead. The abruptness of that coughing fit had blown away all his thoughts at that moment – including what he was planning to ask Loudred about. Feeling sheepish, Blue scratched his brow and gave Loudred an embarrassed shake of his head. "I can't seem to remember it after that, sorry."

"Ah, well." Loudred gave Blue a thump on the chest with his fist and grinned. "Don't sweat it! We're guildmates, after all. If you ever remember what you wanted to ask, just punch me in the shoulder sometime. I'll hear y'out."

"Thanks, Loudred."

"Hah, no need for thanks!" Loudred said. "You're one of my precious little apprentices, after all. If I don't give a hand along when you're havin' trouble, then I'm being an awful mentor! Haha!"

Loudred held out his hand, balled it into a fist and gave his chest a strong, resounding _thump!_ After that, he motioned to Blue, and gestured for the Riolu to do the same.

"Heh," Blue nodded, and held out his paw in front of his chest.

Becoming a good partner, keeping Fée safe, and helping her fulfill her dream. In order to do that, he'll have to reach farther – to take a hold of a strength that he lacked now. A strong shoulder, the strength to carry even the heaviest of burdens. So even if the going gets rough, he can be sure that his partner has someone to lean against. Someone that'll support her.

_Thump!_

That would be his goal.

* * *

"Aaagh..."

After bidding his little buddy good night, Loudred made his way back to the darkened corridor. A loud yawn escaped his wide mouth as he stretched out his arms above his head. He hadn't expected to spend so much time talking with the boy, but it didn't bother him. He's Blue's mentor, after all. Having to console the Riolu's fears – as well as give him some encouragement – was an obligation that he has no qualms about fulfilling.

"Heh... to think that even he had some little worries buried inside that handsome face," Loudred mused to himself. "he's more like me than I thought! Hah!"

Loudred shook his head and opened his mouth wide to laugh. But a sudden thought rushed into his head, and he slammed his hands over his lips. It was late, and if he started reveling in his amusement, he'd cause the entire guildhouse to be shaken awake.

"Sunflora'll bury me again..." Loudred grumbled in a muffled voice. The memory of that horrid experience came flooding into his mind, bringing with it a violent shudder and an ugly frown. Shaking his head, Loudred clamped his hands over his long ears to try and throw that scene away before he ended up getting nightmares.

"U – um, excuse me?"

A quiet voice drew his attention backward. In the dark, he could just make out a small splotch of color huddled against the wall beside the viney doorway to Blue's room. It was a little blob of brown, with a dash of bright blue splashed on top of it. Loudred squinted his eyes, trying to focus his night vision a bit more.

"Gah... y'must be kiddin' me," Loudred slapped his face with his palm. "he's not like me at all... that lucky brat. This world's unfair, I swear."

"Huh?" Confused, Fée took a timid step toward the grumbling Loudred and tilted her head. "D – did I say something wrong?"

"Nah, I'm just cursin' my luck," Loudred muttered as he shook his head. He noticed that the bandage wrapped around Fée's head was still there. He straightened out his back and jabbed a finger at the doorway behind the Eevee. "you're not here to visit him, are'ya, Fée?"

"Oh, um... sorta," Fée's cheeks tinted pink as she rubbed her paws around the patch of blue she had wrapped around her neck. "Blue's not very good with the cold, so I thought I'd bring him an extra blanket just in case he wasn't feeling very comfortable."

"You're bringing him a blanket..." Loudred repeated. He felt a boiling sense of jealousy gurgling around inside his gut as he watched the blushing Eevee fumble around with the blanket tied around her neck. He sighed, and slumped down again – feeling defeated.

"I – is that bad?" Fée stammered, looking startled at her guildmate's odd reaction. "I – I know I'm not allowed to sleep in the same room as Blue, but I – I thought I could at least do something like this..."

"Ah, don't worry about it," Loudred said, shaking his head again. He slapped a wide grin on his face, and planted his knuckles on his hips. "go ahead and give that lucky boy your gift. I'm sure he'll appreciate it. He's got himself a pretty chilly room in there."

"Ah, alright!" Fée beamed as she gave Loudred a quick bow, her tail flicking left to right like a metronome. "I wont stay long, I'll just give him the blanket and be out in a jiffy!"

Loudred chuckled as he held out his right hand, "Oh what the hey. We're already this late at night anyway. Y'can take as much time as y'want in there, just make sure you're back in your room by the mornin' call tomorrow, right?"

"I – I wont stay long!" Fée reiterated, blushing. "T – thanks, Loudred!"

The Eevee gave him one more bow, before turning around and pushing her way through the wall of vines. Now alone again, Loudred scratched his head and sighed. Such was the way of youth, he mused to himself. Who was he to stand in the way of such shining affection like that? He'd be a villain! Chuckling, Loudred shrugged and gave himself a pat on a back for his 'good deed.'

"Oh... um, Loudred?"

"Agh?" Startled, Loudred turned around to see Fée still standing behind him. "W – what is it? I thought you're givin' Blue that blanket?"

"I... I just wanted to ask you something quick first," Fée said. She pawed at the ground, her face red and her ears flat on her head.

_Ah gosh, _Loudred couldn't help but smirk as he let out a sigh. _It's gonna be the same as Blue, ain't it?_

The exasperated guildmate swallowed his amusement and puffed out his chest, "What is it Fée? I'll try to answer whatever question y'got, as long as it's not about boys! Haha!"

"Eh?!" Fée's face flushed even redder at Loudred's words. "N – no, it's not!... well, it's kinda... but, erm..!"

_Gah._ Loudred shook his head and slapped his forehead with his palm. _It is._

"What I wanted to know is..." Fée mumbled. "do you think that it's wrong for me to rely on Blue all the time?"

"Eh?" Loudred squinted his eyes. "What d'ya mean by that?"

"Blue... he's both tougher, and braver than I am. When I'm out with him, I feel safe, and protected just by standing beside him."

"Ain't that a good thing though?" Loudred said. "I mean, it's good that you trust him that much. Partners like the two of ya need to have that kind'a trust, otherwise it'd be hard to cooperate when you're out explorin', after all."

"I understand that," Fée said, nodding. "but... that's also what worries me a bit. Blue's strong, and he's always protecting me." Fée reached up with her paws and pulled at the blanket around her neck. "I feel like I can't give back all that he's giving me, Loudred."

"It's even worse when he gets hurt for my sake," she continued. "I want to be able to keep him safe, the same way he does for me. But I can't fight as well as he can, nor am I as tough or brave as he is..."

Fée closed her eyes and shook her head, "I want to pursue my dream of becoming an explorer, but I know I can't do it if I'm always relying on Blue. Loudred, what do you think I should do?"

Loudred shook his head, "You're askin' me some difficult stuff here, Fée." He watched as the Eevee's face fell. Chuckling, Loudred shook his head again and added, "But that doesn't mean I ain't got some advice for you."

"Huh?"

"You've just became an apprentice, Fée, and you're already doubtin' yourself like that," Loudred said. "that ain't a good mindset to keep while you're climbin' up to become an explorer. You need to be more–" Loudred thumped his chest with a fist, "–about yourself, Fée."

Fée cocked her head to the side, confused, "More... what?"

"Confident, of course!" Loudred chuckled. "Listen, you're a smart one, Fée. I'm willin' to bet my savings on that. But y'know? You can't be thinking of yourself as a burden on Blue all the time. That's silly."

"I'm thinking of myself as a burden?" Fée echoed.

Loudred folded his arms as he nodded, "Uh – huh! 'Relying' on Blue, 'being protected' by Blue. You can't be treating yourself as lower than your own partner, y'know? You and Blue, you're both equals when you're out there, exploring the frontier."

"But, I..."

"Fée, I know you probably feel like you can't match up to that boy when it comes to muscles and punch – power," Loudred watched as the Eevee made a meek nod. "but you can't be thinkin' of yourself in his role all the time. We're not all the same Pokémon, we're all made for different things. Blue's strong, and he's only gonna get stronger from hereon out. And you..."

"But what about me?" Fée asked. "What can I do? What is my role?"

Loudred folded his arms before his chest, and closed his eyes. An acute sense of deja vu washed over him as he mulled over Fée's dilemma. Something similar to this happened in the past before. Loudred remembered it very well. After all, it was the same question, the same worries that was asked of him. And the Pokémon that held that question...

Smiling, Loudred waved his hand and said, "Fée, you're bunkin' with Sunflora and Chimecho right now, aren't you?"

"Eh?" The sudden change in topic startled the Eevee. "Y – yes, I'm staying in the same room as them right now. What about it?"

"Heh, well," Loudred chuckled and jabbed a finger over his shoulder, pointing it toward the hallway. "I think the Pokémon that can best answer your question there, is Sunflora. I'm willin' to bet that she'd be more than pleased to help you with your worries, Fée."

"Sunflora?" Fée tapped her chin with her paw. "She's sleeping right now though..."

"Shake her awake and ask her then!" Loudred said, grinning. "You're a member of our guild now, Fée. One of our precious apprentices! You can ask her anything you want, any time. I'm sure she wouldn't mind!"

"Eh?! I can't do that!" Fée retorted, looking shocked. "That'd be rude!"

"Ah, well go ask her tomorrow them, if you're so worried." Loudred chuckled. "But what I'm sayin' is the truth. Sunflora'll be able to help you with figuring out your 'role.' Much better than I can."

"I see..." Fée held her paw over her chest and took a deep breath. When she finished exhaling, a small smile replaced her despondent frown. She nodded one more time at Loudred, and said, "Okay. I'll be sure to ask Sunflora for some advice. Thank you Loudred!"

"Y'don't have to thank me," Loudred said, waving his hand. "anyway, aren't you supposed to be giving your boyfriend that blanket there? He's probably shiverin' while he's sleepin' right now. If you're gonna tuck him in, you better do it before he freezes."

"Oh, you're right!" Fée's ears shot straight up as she fumbled around with the blue cloth around her neck. "I'll get to that right now! Thank you, Loudred!"

"I said, you don't need to thank me!" Loudred's complaints fell on deaf ears though, as the Eevee just smiled and bowed at him before pushing her way through the vines. Sighing, Loudred shrugged and shook his head.

"To think that she had been sittin' outside his door, waiting for a chance to give him a blanket..." Loudred chuckled at the thought of Fée waiting outside while he and Blue were chatting together. "Ain't that an adorable thought?..."

"Eh?" A sudden realization popped into his head. If Fée had been waiting outside while they were talking, then wouldn't that mean she heard the long conversation that the two of them had in there?

_ ...I guess that explains why she was so eager to ask me for some advice as well,_ Loudred scratched his head. _Agh… I should've tried to make her feel a little better before letting her go. Oh well, I'll just __have__ to leave it to Sunflora then. _He turned around and began to make his way down the corridor again.

_ She's in good hands, I'm sure of that. Or should I say good leaves? Haha!_

Chuckling, Loudred took one last look at the vine – covered doorway and waved his hand. Then, with a proud feeling welling up inside his chest, he left the two alone and made his way back to his room.

* * *

Basked in the shadow of night, a solitary figure stumbled through the now – empty Main Plaza. With a ragged green cloak swathed around his body, the figure made for a suspicious sight as it headed toward the large fountain in the center of the plaza. From the way the figure moved its body, one uneven step at a time, it was clear that the cloaked Pokémon was suffering from extreme exhaustion.

Once it reached the fountain, it slammed its side against the stone walls of the fountain pool. His chest heaved as he slid down the wall and onto the ground, using the fountain as a support as he tried to catch his breath.

"Gah... hagh...!" A ragged cough escaped his mouth as he tried to swallow a lungful of air. A green claw extended from the folds of his cloak, reaching up into his hooded face. His throat was parched to the point that even just breathing was causing him immense pain. The insides of his mouth, from his tongue all the way down to his throat felt like one long strip of sandpaper.

When his coughing fit subsided, he struggled back onto his feet, and grabbed a hold of the fountain wall. His arms, and his legs both felt like they were restrained by heavy chains. He strained his muscles to pull himself up until he could see into the fountain pool. There, a wonderful bounty of clear, cool water lay before him.

Without even hesitating, the Pokémon dunked his claws into the pool and scooped up a veritable amount of water. In his haste, he ended up splashing it all over his face. Only a small fraction of the liquid entered his awaiting mouth, but what little water he got to taste was enough to revitalize him.

Breathing deep, the cloaked figure stared at his soaked claws for a moment. Then, he dove his claws back toward the fountain pool for another helping. However, as he was about to dip his claws back in, something caught his eye. A reflection in the clear surface of the fountain pool. A reflection of a certain face.

Hovering above him, watching him as he tried to sate his thirst were the four statues of the Founders of Treasure Town: Torkoal, Sigilyph, Golurk and Dusknoir. The hooded figure tore his attention away from the water for just a moment, and stared back at the motionless Pokémon above him. His eyes moved from one statue to the next, each giving him pause until his gaze fell upon the last.

"Dusknoir..." his voice was that of a low hiss. A gleam appeared from within his hood as he bared a fang at the immobile stone statue. He held out a claw, and pointed it at Dusknoir's single eye.

"Good evening."

Startled by the sudden voice behind him, the figure spun around with his claw still extended. Water sprayed from the tips of his claws, as well as his cloak as he forced himself into a defensive stance. However, the sudden jerking of his limbs like that sent a ripple of pain through his nerves, making him falter and cough.

"Who's there?" He hissed in between coughs. "Show yourself!"

A pair of pink and white ribbons floated into view, drawing the hooded figure's attention with it. There, standing in the shadow of a nearby building was a rather handsome Pokémon. Two bows adorned the Pokémon's body, one on his ear and the other underneath his chin. There was a small pink bag hanging off the Pokemon's neck, with something cylindrical poking out of the top. A smile decorated his face as he walked toward the figure, his ribbons held out to his sides in a display of nonaggression.

"My, I'm sorry if I startled you," the Pokémon swept one of his ribbon over his chest, bowing his head. "I was just surprised to find someone else out this late at night."

"What... what do you want...?" The figure held one of his claws pointed at the stranger's face, but moved his other one up to his mouth to cover up another cough.

"Before that, allow me to introduce myself. You may call me Barie, a Sylveon that works at the cafe over there," he said, pointing a ribbon back at the building he just came from. "it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Mrgh..." the cloaked figure didn't lower his guard. He didn't know what to expect from this stranger, and he had no interest in throwing himself into any unnecessary risk. He settled for a quick nod, and a noncommittal grumble to this 'Barie.'

"As for what I want..." the Sylveon let out a deep chuckle and waved a paw. "well, I do work at a cafe. And for me to spot a Pokémon drinking out of a fountain instead of something more... appealing is appalling to me. In fact, I'd say it's quite horrifying even."

"Get to the point..." the figure growled.

"My, no time for a little chat, hm?" Barie shook his head and strolled over to the figure's side, earning himself a hiss and a claw beside his cheek. The Sylveon didn't flinch, and instead laid one of his ribbons atop the figure's arm. "How about I offer you a drink, then? I assure you, what I make is quite a ways better than fountain water."

"A drink." The figure's tone of voice was skeptical. "What are you talking about?"

"My, I'm not talking about much," Barie shook his head, and moved his ribbons over to his purse. He pulled out the cylindrical canister nestled inside, and showed it to the figure with a wink. "all I'm doing is offering you something better than fountain water."

Barie gave the canister a quick shake, letting the quiet sound of liquid sloshing sound out between them. "As for what it is, it is a warm broth made from a mixture of Yache and Oran. While it is a bit on the sour side, I guarantee that you will enjoy it far more than plain water." The Sylveon made another teasing wink as he untwisted the cap of the canister, letting the fresh scent of the drink waft out.

Despite still feeling suspicious, the figure couldn't deny that what Barie was offering smelled very enticing. However, even with that, he wasn't so foolish as to just let his guard down over a delectable scent. After all, he had just got done poisoning another Pokémon with a berry broth of his own. He kept his distance, and his eyes on the handsome Pokémon's face.

"What's the catch...?" He growled. "A Pokémon out in the middle of the night, offering drinks to strangers... doesn't that seem suspicious to you?"

"My, my," Barie chuckled as he shook his head. "I suppose you have a point. To the average Pokémon, I guess my offer does seem odd, doesn't it?"

The figure didn't respond. Instead, he continued his silent vigil, watching the Sylveon for anything suspicious.

"If you keep staring at me like that, you're going to make me blush," Barie said. "but I suppose if I can't convince you with just words, I'll have to resort to something a bit more... concrete."

Barie took his canister of broth, and unscrewed the cap off. He first tilted the opening toward the suspicious figure, showing him the bright blue liquid steaming inside. Then, he took the cap and poured a small amount of broth inside. With a smile, Barie brought it up to his lips.

"Cheers."

He opened his mouth and took a sip. The hooded Pokémon watched as the Sylveon smacked his blue – stained lips. He took a look at the hooded Pokémon and offered the entire canister. "Trust me now? Here, you can have the entire thing – I'm fine with just this much."

The hooded Pokémon grumbled as he accepted the canister into his claws. Yache and Oran were the ingredients, or so the Sylveon claimed... It shouldn't have any adverse affects if he ingested it, seeing as how those two berries don't hold any sort of debilitating effect on him. However, just to be on the safe side, he decided to dip the tip of his claw into the drink first.

"Mmgh..." He stared at the glob of blue wobbling on his claw. Judging from sight and scent, he couldn't detect any sort of poison or otherwise tampering. He looked up, and saw the Sylveon sitting down and enjoying his own little cup of broth. His throat tickled, and ached as he watched Barie sip his drink.

"Forget it..." the figure grumbled, and opened his mouth. Throwing caution to the wind, he tipped the broth into his mouth. As soon as the hot drink touched his tongue, he felt a sudden burst of energy flood through his body.

_This... this is good!_ All of his previous hesitation was blown away as he partook in the broth. The warm soup slid down his throat, healing all the little aches and scrapes along the way. A comfortable warmth spread out from his chest, flooding his entire body with energy. Invigorated, he held the canister with both claws and continued downing the broth until there was none left inside. And even then, he tried to shake out some more leftover drops onto his outstretched tongue.

"My, enjoying it?"

Putting the canister down onto the ground, he put a claw over his neck and took a deep breath. His breathing was no longer pained and ragged. He tapped his feet against the ground, and swiped at the air with his claws. All the weight laden in his limbs had vanished. He could move again...!

He turned to face his benefactor, and nodded his hooded head, "Barie... was it?" His voice was back to normal now as well. It was no longer hoarse and pained, but that of his normal tone.

"I'm glad you remembered my name," the Sylveon said, smiling. "did the broth help?"

"Yes... yes it did," he replied. The cloaked Pokémon held out his claw before him, and stared at it for a moment. Then, he pointed it at the Sylveon's face and asked, "Why did you help me? Had I any desire to, I could attack you right now and robbed you."

"Ah, but you aren't, are you?" Barie said with a wave of his ribbon. The cloaked Pokémon paused for a moment as the Sylveon stared at him, as if waiting for him to either support or deny the statement. Seeing as how there was no reason to attack someone who helped him, he tucked his claw back inside his cloak.

Barie smiled and reached out with his ribbon to pick up the now – empty canister. He brought it back toward him, and looked inside, "As for why I decided to help you... well, let's say I felt a little camaraderie from you."

"What do you mean by that?"

"You looked like you were a bit down on your luck," Barie said as he put the canister back down. "I'm no stranger to that myself. I figured that if anyone needed a little bit of a pick – me – up, it would be the ragged – looking Pokémon struggling to drink from the fountain."

"Mrgh..." the ragged – looking Pokémon grumbled as he watched Barie chuckle at his expense.

"Mind you, I mean you no insult," Barie said. "but I do speak the truth. I suppose the wise thing would've been to stay inside and let the suspicious Pokémon be on his way instead of making a drink for him – but I've been told before that I'm a bit of an idiot."

"I'm glad that you're an idiot then," the cloaked Pokémon said. "I appreciate your idiocy."

"Ah, a sense of humor, I see," Barie chuckled. "well, that's good to know."

"Is there anything you want from me, then? For the drink."

"My, my, a sense of honor as well! You're quite interesting." Barie rubbed his chin with his ribbon and thought for a moment. "Normally, I'd ask for you to sit down and we can have a chat over some drinks. You seem like someone who has seen many exciting things."

"A... chat?" The strange request took the cloaked Pokémon aback. He expected the Sylveon to request for something like valuables, or perhaps a favor.

"That's right," Barie said. "but it's late, and I'm sure you wouldn't be interested in spending the rest of the night humoring me. So I'll settle for your name instead."

"My name..." The figure held his hood with his claws, drawing it further down his face. "is that all you want?"

"Or would you prefer me call you 'Raggedy – Looking?' I have no preference either way."

"I can't tell if you're insulting me or not," he grumbled as he sent a glare at the Sylveon. Barie responded by giving him another teasing wink.

The cloaked Pokémon couldn't quite get a grasp on how much he could trust this strange Sylveon. While his instincts told him to keep his distance, and keep his mouth shut; he felt as though he would be doing Barie a disservice by ignoring him and leaving. Still, to give this stranger something like a name... well, it wasn't like he was going to lose anything by doing so.

The figure held out his claw to his chest and said, "'Green.'"

"Pardon?" Barie looked confused. "Are you talking about the color of your cloak?"

'Green' shook his head, "That's my name. You may call me 'Green.'"

Barie fell silent. He held his paw over the bow on his chest, and brought it up to cover his mouth. 'Green' stood there, waiting for the chatty Sylveon to respond. However, Barie remained silent, almost as if he was stuck deep in thought.

_Was __name too outlandish__?_ 'Green' wondered. _I should've thought of something a bit more believable._

After a minute passed, Barie dropped his bow and smiled. He held out his ribbon and said, "Green, hm? It's an interesting name, for sure."

"You... what?" Dumbfounded, Green stared at the Sylveon. That wasn't the response he expected. Perhaps the Sylveon was more gullible than he thought. Either way, he figured that he better play it safe.

"I... I mean, yes. That's my name."

"Well, I hope we do meet again sometime, Green." Barie said, bowing. "I'd love to have you partake in another one of my drinks again."

"...yeah," Green had to admit, having another drink made by this Sylveon interested him. He pulled his cloak tighter around himself as he took a step back. "I'll be sure to visit you some time again, Barie."

"I'll be looking forward to it," Barie said with a smile. "perhaps you can tell me some interesting stories the next time we meet."

"...maybe," Green muttered.

"My, that's something to look forward to then!" Barie nodded. "Farewell then, Green. And... well, best of luck to you."

"Likewise, Barie."

He watched as Barie bowed one more time before turning around and disappearing into the building behind him. Green was about to turn around as well, but a sudden glint of light caught his eye. The canister that held the Sylveon's broth was still on the ground. He walked toward it, and picked it up.

Green reached inside his cloak, and withdrew a dull, weathered – looking stone. He held it over the canister, and saw that the opening was just enough to fit the stone.

"Best of luck... huh?" Green muttered. He slid the stone into the canister, and replaced the lid on top before tucking it back inside his cloak. Reaching up with his claws, he adjusted his hood as he looked up into the sky – at the bright moon shining overhead. Sighing, he shook his head and turned his back to the cafe.

"Eleven more to go… no time to waste..."


End file.
